THE RUNDOWN
The Patriots dominated on Thursday night, winning the opener of a four-game set, 10-2, over UT Rio Grande Valley (11-10). DBU (12-6) homered twice and saw a career performance from Kyle Rich on the mound in a contest that now puts the Patriots in the driver's seat for the series.

DBU opened the scoring against the Vaqueros in the second inning when Austin Bell stung an RBI single into right field. UTRGV would answer with their own solo home run in the top of the third, but DBU swung right back in the bottom of the frame. George Specht got a 3-1 pitch right down the middle and deposited a no-doubt blast over the wall in right.

The Pats would score nine runs in a row before it was all said and done. After Specht's home run, DBU added two more in the fifth when Ryan Wrobleski launched a 427 foot jack over the Patriots' bullpen in left for a three-run HR. Austin Bell would drive in another run in the sixth to make it 6-1 DBU.

In the seventh, the Patriots blew the game open, adding four more runs to the total. Jackson Glenn drove in a run with an infield single. Cole Moore hit a sacrifice fly out to right field, Andrew Benefield drove a runner home on a fielder's choice, and Bell would get his third RBI of the night to account for all of the Patriot offense.

On the mound, it was a career night for RHP Kyle Rich. Rich struck out eight through six innings and only allowed one run. The eight Ks and six innings pitched were both personal bests for Rich. Peyton Sherlin and Zach Heaton would combine to pitch the last three innings, striking out three and allowing just one additional run. Combined with the fantastic start from Rich, Patriot pitchers allowed just three hits, while striking out 11 Vaqueros.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Five Patriots had multi-hit games tonight, including Jackson Glenn and Jace Grady who have 16 multi-hit games combined.
- DBU has now won three in a row after their Thursday night win over UTRGV.
- The Patriots were efficient when it came to scoring base runners tonight, leaving only three stranded for the game.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
3 – DBU continues to wreak havoc on the basepaths, swiping three more bags tonight.
7 – Cole Moore now has an RBI in seven straight games.
35 – With two more longballs tonight, DBU now has 35 HRs on the season.
 

HEAD COACH DAN HEEFNER ON KYLE'S PERFORMANCE
"He did a super job for us. He's just getting better and better every outing. The effort and work that he puts in between every start is great. You love to see him be rewarded for that work."

UP NEXT
DBU and UTRGV play game two of the four game set on Friday night. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30PM.