THE RUNDOWN
No. 24 DBU Baseball secured a thrilling 11-7 victory over the Oklahoma Sooners on Tuesday night at Horner Ballpark. Tied at seven apiece in the bottom of the seventh, a Nathan Humphreys grand slam proved to be the difference as the Patriots improved to 4-0 in 2024.

Early in the first inning, Oklahoma was able to strike first and take the first lead of the ballgame. After a walk and a stolen base, Bryce Madron's single gave the Sooners a 1-0 lead.

The Patriots would quickly respond in the bottom of the inning, as Miguel Santos blasted a two-run homer to put the Sooners in a deficit. In just four games, Santos already has two home runs, looking to surpass his 15 homers from 2023.

Jackson Nicklaus added to the fireworks with a solo home run over the right-field wall to open the second inning. DBU's defense was able to weather the storm for the remainder of the inning, leaving the game tied at two.

After recording his fourth strikeout, DBU starter Nick Wilson was replaced by River Ridings in the top of the third inning. Ridings kept the two Sooners on base from advancing with a strikeout paired with a pick-off throw to close the inning.

The latter half of inning four proved pivotal for the Patriots. Tom Poole reached on an infield single and Luke Heefner followed with a triple down the right field line to bring in Poole. DBU stretched its lead to 5-2 after RBI singles from Nathan Humphreys and Ethan Mann.

Alex Pendergast gave the Patriots a four-run advantage the following inning after an RBI single scored Poole.

Oklahoma would begin to cut into the lead, scoring two runs in the sixth on a couple of wild pitches.

In the bottom of the sixth, DBU made it a 7-4 ballgame when Ethan Mann crushed his first home run of 2024.

The Sooners were able to chase reliever Dillon Haines with a two-run shot from Snyder and a solo home run from Nicklaus that evened the score in the seventh.

With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the inning, Humphreys sent Horner Ballpark into a frenzy with a game-breaking grand slam, giving the home team an 11-7 advantage.

Charlie Atkinson came up clutch and earned his second win of the season, pitching 2.1 innings and only allowing two hits to close out the Sooners.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
· DBU advances to 4-0 in 2024 and remains perfect at Horner Ballpark.
. Nick Wilson threw four strikeouts in his first start in a Patriots uniform.
. Patriots' reliever Charlie Atkinson continues to shine in his freshman campaign, earning his second win of the season on Tuesday night.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 
11 – DBU scored a season-high 11 runs versus Oklahoma.
7 – As a team, DBU batters were 7-for-14 with two outs on Tuesday.
13 – The Patriots' offense impressed with 13 hits in the first midweek game of 2024.

UP NEXT
DBU Baseball will play their second weekend series of 2024 when they welcome the Central Michigan Chippewas to Horner Ballpark on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
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