THE RUNDOWN
DBU (17-9, 4-3) dropped the series opener to Louisiana Tech (14-12, 4-3) on Friday afternoon in Ruston, Louisiana. It was the fourth time this season the Patriots lost after being the first team to score.
 
In the second at-bat of the game, Miguel Santos barreled a fly ball over the left field wall of J.C. Love Field for a solo homer to give DBU an early boost.
 
Ryan Johnson and the Patriot defense kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard until the third when Dalton Davis and Brody Drost both hit RBI singles with runners in scoring position to take the lead, 2-1.
 
Johnson was a difficult draw for Tech as he punched out nine Bulldogs and gave up only one free base on a hit by pitch. However, two mistakes turned into home runs in the fourth and fifth innings respectively, stretching margin to 4-1.
 
In the top of the sixth, Miguel Santos singled, and Nate Rombach doubled to put runners on second and third with one out.
 
Ethan Mann lofted a ball to centerfield to record his sixth sacrifice fly of the season, scoring Santos from third.
 
Jaron DeBerry relieved Johnson in the sixth and would go on to finish the game for DBU, surrendering only one unearned run in 3.0 innings.
 
The Patriots placed runners on first and second with one out in both the eighth and the ninth innings but failed to push a run across in either scenario as Louisiana Tech took the game, 5-2.
 
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- DBU is now 5-2 on Fridays.
- In 5.0 innings of work, Ryan Johnson struck out nine batters without allowing a walk.
- The Bulldogs' leadoff hitter reached base in five of eight offensive innings opposite two of nine for the Patriots. 
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
.400 - The first three batters in the Patriot lineup (Nathan Humphreys, Miguel Santos, and Nate Rombach) combined for a .400 batting average (6-15) in the game.
3 - Nate Rombach hit all three of DBU's doubles on Friday. He is now tied with Grant Jay for the team lead with eight.
15 - Nathan Humphreys extended his on-base streak to 15 games with a ninth-inning single.
 
UP NEXT
DBU gets the chance to bounce back tomorrow afternoon against Louisiana Tech in a game scheduled for 2:00 pm.
  Read Full Article