THE RUNDOWN
DBU fell behind 4-0 to Xavier in the first inning, but 12 unanswered runs helped deliver the Patriots' 15th victory of the season.
MD Johnson struggled out of the gate, allowing four runs on five hits in the first inning. He would settle in, allowing only three baserunners in just over four innings the rest of the night.
An RBI double by Jameson Hannah put the Patriots on the board in the second inning. DBU (15-9) would tie it in the fifth on Tim Millard's eighth home run of the season, a three-run blast to left center.
Jarod Bayless replaced Johnson in the sixth after the Patriot starter allowed his only walk of the evening. Bayless struck out half the batters he faced in three scoreless frames.
A two-run, bases-loaded single by Millard in the sixth put DBU on top for good. An RBI fielder's choice by Garrett Wolforth and a sacrifice fly by Jimmy Glowenke tacked on two more Patriot runs in the sixth.
DBU scored once more in the seventh and three more times in the eighth inning, capped off by Devlin Granberg's two-run single. The Musketeers (9-15) threatened in the ninth, scoring once off Bradley Gonzales, but the Patriots held on for their third straight win.
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Bayless has now allowed two runs in his last 10 appearances. His 3.0 innings pitched Friday were a season high.
- Jameson Hannah extended his hitting streak to 25 games, while Granberg hit safely in his 14th straight game.
- The Patriots walked a season-high 10 times and struck out seven, just their fourth game with more walks than strikeouts this year.
COACH DAN HEEFNER ON HIS TEAM'S COMEBACK EFFORT
"Jarod did a great job for us. He really steadied the boat. We couldn't have asked for more from him. I thought offensively, we had some good at-bats and just battled and battled and finally broke it open."
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
3 – Millard recorded his third five-RBI game of the season Friday.
5 – Granberg now has at least two hits and one RBI in each of his last five games. He is batting .571 (12-21) in that stretch with 11 RBI.
2 – Five different Patriots recorded two hits Friday.
UP NEXT
DBU and Xavier conclude the weekend at noon Saturday at Horner Ballpark. Allbry Major will take the mound for the Musketeers, and the Patriots will counter with Kody Funderburk.
