THE RUNDOWN
Behind a strong start from James Ellwanger and timely contributions throughout the lineup, the Patriots (23-11, 7-4 CUSA) held off a late Jacksonville State (21-14, 5-6 CUSA) rally to secure a 7-4 win and clinch the weekend series in Jacksonville, Alabama. The Gamecocks made a late surge, but they were ultimately kept at bay by DBU closer Mason Peters.
 
Jacksonville State struck first with a three-hit opening frame, capped by Grayson Ashe driving in Cooper Blauser from third on an infield single. The ball was fielded by James Ellwanger, but his momentum toward third prevented a throw to first, allowing the inning to continue. Despite surrendering the game's first run, Ellwanger quickly settled in, establishing an early rhythm on the mound with five strikeouts across his first two innings.
 
The Patriot offense answered in the third, beginning with a leadoff single by Mason Swinney, and Luke Heefner followed with a sacrifice push bunt to advanced Swinney to second, nearly winning the play at first. Grant Jay turned the tide in favor of DBU with a towering two-run home run to deep left-center field, giving the Patriots a 2-1 lead. The next man up, Nathan Humphreys, used his eyes and his legs to become the third run of the frame, turning a 1-2 count into a full-count walk before swiping both second and third and coming around to score on an RBI groundout by Chayton Krauss.
 
James Ellwanger remained locked in on the mound, fanning at least two Gamecocks in each of his four innings. He matched a career high with nine strikeouts, allowing just one run on four hits and a pair of walks in a commanding outing. In the fifth, Jerrod Jenkins took over and navigated a one-out, bases-loaded situation by inducing a timely double-play grounder to escape the jam unscathed.
 
The bats came back to life in the top of the seventh after a scoreless stretch through the middle innings. Keaton Grady and Michael Dattalo sparked the rally with back-to-back singles, setting up runners on the corners. A wild pitch during Adam Berghult's at-bat brought in another run to make it 4–1, and Berghult capitalized moments later with an RBI double to the left-center gap, stretching the lead to four. Ben Tryon came off the bench to pinch hit for Swinney and drew a walk, setting the table for more damage. After two hit-by-pitches and a run-scoring groundout, DBU carried a 7-1 advantage into the bottom of the seventh.
 
The Gamecocks threatened in their next turn at bat, placing their first five hitters on base to start the eighth. Facing three arms out of the Patriot bullpen, Jax State scratched across three runs but left the bases loaded as Tyler Schott and Mason Peters combined for three outs and kept DBU in front 7-4.
 
The Gamecocks looked to complete the comeback in the ninth. Drew Collins sent Peters' third pitch of the frame into left field for a single, but Peters promptly shut the door, striking out the next three batters for his fourth save of the season and a series win for the Patriots.
 
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- DBU has won all three of its all-time series against Jacksonville State, including the last two as co-members of Conference USA.
- Jerrod Jenkins made his third consecutive appearance of three innings of shutout baseball.
- Grant Jay recorded his fifth game of the season with at least three RBI.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
3 - Grant Jay has hit a home run in three straight games.
9 - James Ellwanger tied his career high with nine strikeouts.
10 - Chayton Krauss extended his hit streak to 10 games.
 
UP NEXT
The Patriots eye a series sweep of the Gamecocks on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is slated for noon at Rudy Abbott Field. Read Full Article