THE RUNDOWN

The No. 17 ranked (Perfect Game) DBU Patriots (1-0, 0-0 CUSA) kicked down the door on the new season with an opening-day victory over the North Dakota State Bison (0-1, 0-0 SUMMIT). Five Patriots finished the game with multiple knocks, but Tom Poole did the most damage, accruing six total bases while spraying three doubles to the outfield wall. Patriot starter Micah Bucknam tossed seven strikeouts across 4.1 innings of work in his DBU debut, throwing 89 total pitches and getting up to 97 mph on his fastball.

After Bucknam delivered a scoreless first, the Patriot offense immediately went to work. Nathan Humphreys led off with a single to right field, Tom Poole laced his first double, and Grant Jay drew a full-count walk. Chayton Krauss would then draw a bases-loaded walk on four pitches to produce the first run of the season before Adam Berghult's first swing in a DBU uniform traveled 357 feet from home plate for a grand slam home run.

The Bison would scratch a few runs across before the Patriots could muster up more offensive production. A Grant Jay bloop single and an Adam Berghult sac fly would give the Patriots a 7-3 lead at the end of the fifth inning. In the bottom of the sixth, Nathan Humphreys would turn on an inside fastball and send it 422 feet for his first home run of the season. He would be followed by a Grant Jay infield single, and a 108 mph exit velocity double from Chayton Krauss to extend the Patriot lead to six.

Nick Bonn was electric in his DBU debut, tossing three innings in relief headlined by his six strikeouts and a fastball that would get up to 96 mph. Bonn relied on his fastball/splitter tunnel to generate swings and misses throughout his outing. 

Chayton Krauss would add one final insurance run in the bottom of the eighth with an RBI single before the ball was given to Jerrod Jenkins to slam the door in the ninth. Jenkins would record just one strikeout in the final frame before inducing a flyout to Dylan Schlaegel in left field to put a bow on opening day.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

- Nathan Humphreys' home run tonight was his second career opening day big fly (2022). 

- In five of the eight innings where DBU had an at-bat, the leadoff hitter reached base.

- Patriot hitters rolled over into one groundout the entire game.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

779 - Adam Berghult and Nathan Humphreys hit a combined 779 feet worth of home runs.

.111 - Patriot pitchers held NDSU hitters to a .111 batting average with two outs.

15 - Patriot pitchers accumulated 15 strikeouts across tonight's nine innings.
 

ON DECK

The pitching matchups for the duration of the opening weekend series against North Dakota State are as follows:

Saturday

DBU: RHP James Ellwanger (2024 1-1 W-L, 6.11 ERA, 17.2 IP, 23 K, 11 BB)

vs.

NDSU: RHP Logan Knight (2024 5-4 W-L, 5.20 ERA, 72.2 IP, 77 K, 38 BB)

Sunday

DBU: RHP Rian Schwede (2024 at Villanova 1-5 W-L, 7.25 ERA, 58.1 IP, 43 K, 29 BB)

vs.

NDSU: RHP Tate Martin (Scheduled to make collegiate debut)