THE LEAD
In the final regular season game of 2016, No. 29 DBU (37-17, 15-5) fell, 4-3, to Wichita State (21-35, 9-12) as a solo homerun from the Shockers' Ryan Tinkham in the bottom of the eighth proved to be the difference on a sunny afternoon in Wichita, Kansas.  The Patriot offense was only able to score in one inning against the Shocker pitching staff in support of starter Jordan Martinson and those three runs would not be enough to sweep the final series of the season.  Dalton Higgins was saddled with the tough-luck loss, as the only blemish on his line was the one run in three innings of work.  Martinson threw five innings in his final regular season start, allowing six hits while striking out seven.
 
Through the first four innings of the game, it was an unconventional pitchers' duel as the Patriots forced Wichita State starter Chandler Sanburn to throw 64 pitches, but only put two runners on base via a hit and a hit by pitch.  On the other side, the Wichita State offense put runners in scoring position in three of the first four innings, but could not get a run across against Martinson until two outs in the fourth.  It was then, with a runner on second and two outs, that Tanner Kirk snuck a fly ball just over the 330 sign in left field for a 2-0 WSU lead.
 
DBU would not let that lead last for long, however.  In the top of the fifth, Trooper Reynolds led off the inning with a ringing single to left field.  Camden Duzenack and Matt Duce followed with doubles and three batters into the frame the score was tied once again.  One out later, with Duce on third after a pitching change and a single to right from pinch-hitter Justin Wall, DBU took the lead as David Martinelli flied out to the base of the wall in centerfield to allow Duce to stroll across home plate uncontested.
 
The lead did not last a half inning and the game officially became a back-and-forth affair in the bottom of the fifth.  A walk to Mikel Mucha, followed by two stolen bases, and a sacrifice fly knotted the game back up at three and it stayed that way until the eighth inning, as both bullpens settled things down in the middle innings.
 
For the Patriots, it was Dalton Higgins, who came on to begin the sixth inning and allowed only one hit in his first two innings of work.  Unfortunately, for the Patriots, the second hit allowed by the veteran right-hander was a solo homerun to open the eighth inning that put the Patriots at a deficit they could not overcome in their final at-bat of the game.
 
DBU HEAD COACH, DAN HEEFNER, ON GETTING READY FOR THE MVC TOURNAMENT
"I like where we are as a team heading into the tournament next week.  We're in good shape health wise and everybody understands their roles.  I also think our team is playing with a lot of confidence at the right time of year."
 
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- DBU enters next week's MVC Tournament as the No. 1 seed.
- For the second consecutive year, the Patriots won 15 conference games.  DBU went 15-5 in MVC action this year and went 15-6 in 2015.
- Following today's one-run loss, the Patriots are 9-6 in one-run games this year.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
4 – DBU hit four doubles in the game with one each from Matt Duce, Camden Duzenack, Austin Listi, and Trooper Reynolds.
7 – Matt Duce extended his hit streak to a season-high seven games.
2 – The Patriots had just two hits with runners in scoring position (2-for-10).
 
UP NEXT
The Patriots will return to action Wednesday, May 25, as they open Missouri Valley Conference Tournament play in Terre Haute, Indiana, against Illinois State.  First pitch is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. (CST).  The winner of the MVC Tournament will secure an automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Tournament which begins the weekend after Memorial Day.