Box Score

Needing a win to have a chance at the championship game of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament, Dallas Baptist (30-29) exploded offensively for fourteen hits in defeating New Mexico State (29-28), 12-4. The loss ends the tournament for the Aggies while DBU needs help from Texas State in the nightcap against UT-Arlington to keep their NCAA Regional hopes alive. Cody Beam got the start on the mound for DBU but it was Paul Voelker (1-1) who did most of the heavy lifting for the Patriot pitching staff. Michael Miller led the offensive outburst for DBU with four hits, two homeruns, and six RBI. Duncan McAlpine had three hits and Mike Wesolowsk two, including a homerun.
 
Before Beam even got to the mound in the first, he already had a four run lead thanks to a couple Patriot longballs. Ronnie Mitchell walked with one out in the opening frame and scored as Michael Miller hit a line drive homerun to leftfield, his eighth of the season and second in as many days. Duncan McAlpine then drew a walk of his own and scored as Mike Wesolowski hit his second homerun of 2013, a mammoth shot to left that cleared the five rows of seats beyond the wall and clanged off the sports bar behind.
 
DBU would push across their fifth run of the day in the second as Nash Knight singled and Boomer Collins followed with a bunt hit. Miller picked up his third RBI of the game with a dump single to left to score Knight and give Beam a little more room to maneuver on the mound.
 
New Mexico State reliever Casey Collins kept DBU in check in the third and fourth innings but, in the fifth, Miller picked up his third hit of the day with a double to leftcenter and McAlpine followed with a double of his own to straightaway center to give DBU a six run cushion through four and a half innings of play. The momentum would sway to the Aggie dugout, however, in the bottom of the inning as a three-run homerun ended the day for Beam. He finished with 4.0 innings, four hits, and three earned runs. Paul Voelker came in to try to stop the Aggie rally, and he did, but not before spending some time in the dugout with his teammates.
 
After throwing two pitchers to Tanner Rust, Voelker had to take a seat for 32 minutes as a passing storm cell brought lightning to QuickTrip Park. When play resumed, Voelker allowed two singles but a couple fielder's choice groundballs and a strikeout ended the threat. Voelker finished his night with 3.1 innings pitched while allowing one run on four hits. He was handed the win, his first of the season, before being lifted in the eighth for Jay Calhoun.
 
The delay did not cool off the Patriot bats. Chane Lynch led off the sixth with a triple to leftcenter. Knight followed with a walk. DBU almost wasted the chance to pad their lead after shallow popouts from Collins and Mitchell but Miller did not waste the opportunity to pad his stat line and launched a three-run homer, his second of the day, to deep leftfield to give DBU a 9-3 advantage going to the bottom of the sixth.
 
In the seventh, after another delay of fifty-two minutes for rain, DBU added a pair of runs to their lead. Wesolowski singled and KJ Alexander walked ahead of a Lynch hit by pitch. Knight then score Wesolowski with a flyout to right and Collins picked up an RBI on a groundout.
 
Calhoun closed out the game for DBU by recording the final five outs and allowing only one base hit. For DBU, the win keeps them in contention for the WAC Tournament crown. If Texas State can beat UTA in the final game of pool play Saturday night, DBU will play UT-San Antonio on Sunday at 1:00 pm for the automatic bid to an NCAA Regional. If UTA is able to win the nightcap, they will play the Roadrunners to close out the tournament with a chance for the championship.