Middle Tennessee was shellacked in the series' first two games against the Dallas Baptist Patriots but had a chance to steal a win on Sunday. The Blue Raiders would be without starting pitcher Drew Horn. But a solid start from Will Jenkins was able to hold the Patriot bats while MTSU built an early lead and never looked back, winning the game 12-6.
Hayden Miller began the second inning with a double down the left-field line, followed by a Matt Wolfe single. Keaton Ray would send Miller home after he singled up the middle to give MTSU its first lead of the series. Eston Snider approached the plate a few batters later and delivered a two-run double to extend the lead.
DBU made a mound visit, but right after that, Middle kept the train moving with an RBI single by Clay Badylak to put the Blue Raiders up 4-0. DBU reliever Jerrod Jenkins would come into the game for Rian Schwede to try to stop the bleeding. He did so by retiring Brett Vondohlen and Kenny McKinley, ending the frame.
The Patriots came back firing in the bottom of the second after a leadoff home run by Nathan Humphreys, which made it 4-1. Jenkins allowed two more base runners but was able to strand them both in scoring position and keep the Blue Raider lead intact.
Dallas Baptist kept it going in the third with back-to-back singles by Tom Poole and Grant Jay to begin the frame. Humphreys singled through the right side of the infield to drive in a run and send Jay to third, where he’d score a batter later thanks to Chayton Krauss' sac-fly. Joey Nerat would strike out to end the inning, but DBU slowly chipped away at the lead.
The Blue Raiders went 1-2-3 in the top of the fourth but would come back the next inning and put up a big inning. It started with a Vondohlen single and a hit-by-pitch to put McKinley on base, followed by a Wolfe bunt single, which scored a run.
Cooper Clapp and Eston Snider delivered back-to-back RBI singles that scored two runs, and Badylak would walk to load the bases. Tyler Minnick approached the dish and singled on a 2-1 pitch that plated two more Blue Raiders and extended the lead.
The big catcher would try to steal second but would be caught between first and second base to get the third out. However, it would be enough time to score Badylak, ending the frame with MT leading 10-3. Jenkins allowed a two-out double to Jay in the bottom of the inning but would force Humphreys to ground out, ending a potential threat.
Krauss led off the sixth inning with a standup double as DBU looked to get back into the ballgame. Jenkins wouldn’t let that happen as he’d retire three straight, including a punchout of Nerat to keep the game at 10-3. He would be pulled heading into the bottom of the seventh after six innings of three-run baseball with a pair of strikeouts.
Ollie Akens would relieve him and have a good inning on the bump. Poole reached with a two-out error by Clapp, but Akens would come back with a strikeout of Jay to send the game to the eighth.
Miller struck out to open the frame, but Wolfe would collect a one-out single, his fifth time reaching base today. Keaton Ray would drive him in on a long fly ball that bounced off the right-center field wall. Ray would advance to third on a groundout and then score after a throwing error by Michael Dattalo pulled the DBU first baseman off the bag and allowed Snider to reach base safely.
The Pats did get the third out of the inning to avoid a mercy-rule opportunity for MTSU, but the lead had widened to 12-3.
Dallas Baptist would not go down without a fight as Humphreys and Krauss reached base to begin the frame. Akens would force back-to-back outs but then allow RBI singles by Keaton Grady and Cody Grebeck. Dattalo extended his 13-game hitting streak with a single to right field, putting two runners on.
Akens was in a battle with Poole, but on the fifth pitch of the at-bat, he hit a blooper to shallow center field, but it would take a great play to keep the ball from getting down. Snider sprinted in, dove, and made that play to keep DBU from scoring anymore and send the game to the ninth inning.
Middle Tennessee couldn’t get anything going in the top of the ninth, and Akens would return for the bottom of the inning to try and close out a Sunday win. He forced DBU to go 1-2-3 against the three hottest hitters of the lineup in Jay, Humphreys, and Krauss to close out a 12-6 victory for the Blue Raiders.
MTSU will be back at it on Tuesday against the Southeast Missouri Redhawks. First pitch is 4:05 p.m. from Capaha Field.
