THE RUNDOWN
DBU fell to Illinois State 5-2 Saturday in Normal, Illinois. The Patriots held the Redbirds to just six hits but mustered only five of their own in a ballgame delayed almost three hours due to lightning. The game two defeat hands DBU (25-17, 5-6) its third consecutive series loss in Missouri Valley play and forces the Pats to fend off the series sweep in game three on Sunday.
Junior pitcher Derek Salata was handed the baseball to get things started. He shushed the Patriots through the first five innings, striking out five and allowing just one run on a leadoff homer from
Miguel Santos before the game entered a lightning delay. Salata and
Ryan Johnson went back and forth early on. Both pitchers retired the second inning in order before the Redbirds (17-21, 5-6) jumped out in front.
In the third, JT Sokolove reached on a soft single and stole second base to set the wheels in motion for Illinois State. Back-to-back base hits would score Sokolove and leave runners on first and second. A two-run triple by Nick Gile then became a bases-clearing punch as an error allowed Gile to come home and gave the Redbirds a swift 4-0 advantage.
But on the very first pitch of the fourth inning,
Miguel Santos silenced Duffy Bass Field with a solo home run lined out of left field that made it a 4-1 contest. However, Salata would not slip up again as he retired the last six batters before the lightning delay.
Two hours and fifty minutes later, play was resumed, and
Bubba Hall began a furious comeback attempt out of the bullpen. Hall sat down the first 10 Redbirds he faced, punching out three to guide the Pats through three innings of shutdown baseball.
But the offense failed to capitalize, and Illinois State added to its lead with a leadoff homer in the eighth inning. The solo shot was the only hit Hall allowed and he finished his 4.0 inning shift with four strikeouts and no walks.
DBU made one last move on its final out in the ninth inning.
Ryan Wrobleski singled down the left-field line to set
Cole Moore up for an RBI single. Moore sent a 1-1 pitch into right field to score Wrobleski and begin a small rally. He moved over to third on a wild pitch and threatened to pull the Pats back within two runs, but a strikeout ended the 5-2 ballgame.
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
-DBU falls below .500 in MVC play after 10 games for the first time since joining the league in 2014.
-The Patriots are undefeated (10-0) in series finales and hope to continue that trend against the Redbirds tomorrow.
-DBU drops three weekend conference series for the first time in school history.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
0 - No batters were walked by either team.
4 - Derek Salata earned his fourth win of the season for the Redbirds
4.0 -
Bubba Hall tied his season-high with 4.0 innings pitched.
ON DECK
DBU and Illinois State play the final game of the series Sunday at 12:00 p.m.
