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Truman State University Athletics

15Bsbaction-Rock
9
Winner Truman State Univ. TSU 33-20
5
Drury DU 32-23-1
Winner
Truman State Univ. TSU
33-20
9
Final
5
Drury DU
32-23-1
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Truman State Univ. TSU 0 7 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 9 12 1
Drury DU 0 0 2 0 3 0 0 0 0 5 12 3

W: Frantz, Kent (9-2) L: Faulconer,Austin (7-6)

Game Recap: Baseball | | Tyler Madsen, Athletics Communications

Baseball Advances with 9-5 Victory Against Drury

ST. CHARLES, Mo. - - For the second straight night, the Truman baseball team used a big inning to build a cushion and held on for a 9-5 victory against Drury (Mo.) University in the 2015 NCAA-II Midwest regional, held on the campus of Lindenwood University.
 
The Bulldogs (33-20) advance to Saturday night's 7 p.m. winner's bracket championship game as the only unbeaten team remaining in the Midwest regional field. Truman will face the winner of Saturday's 11 a.m. game, which will feature Drury and top-seeded Quincy, who fell 5-3 to William Jewell earlier Friday, in an elimination game.
 
After the two squads traded quick first innings at the plate, Truman put the first two runners aboard in the top of the second with back-to-back singles to left by freshmen Brendan Trimble and Michael Venturella. After a sacrifice bunt by senior Jarod Hahn pushed the runners to second and third, sophomore Wyatt Fones blooped a single into shallow center to plate the game's first run. Junior T.J. Wood then reached on a fielder's choice that was compounded by an error by DU's second baseman that allowed Fones to reach second and Venturella to scamper home for a 2-0 lead.
 
Senior Zak Larkin then put a ball on the ground right at the DU second baseman, who bobbled a potential inning-ending double play ball and allowed everyone to advance one base and load the bases. Senior Blake Deaton then recorded an RBI groundout, before senior Paul Trenhaile put a single deep in the hole at shortstop to bring home another run. After sophomore Dave Gambino singled home Truman's fifth run of the inning, Trimble – batting for the second time in the frame – laced a double down the left field line, scoring both Trenhaile and Hahn for a 7-0 lead.
 
Drury would answer with two in the bottom of the third, but Gambino punched right back in the top of the fourth – singling home both Deaton and Trenhaile with one out for a 9-2 advantage.
 
The Panthers would not go away, however, as Tyler Arthur sent a bases-clearing double into the right field corner in the bottom of the fifth, bringing the score to 9-5.
 
However, both teams suddenly began a lock-down on defense, with Bulldog freshman starter Kent Frantz finishing the sixth, before turning things over to the Truman bullpen. Sophomore Alex Hoffman tossed two scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth, before freshman Peter Young closed out the ninth with a 1-2-3 inning through the heart of the DU order.
 
The Bulldogs and Panthers each tallied 12 hits on the night, with Trenhaile posting a 3-for-5 line with two runs and an RBI. Gambino and Trimble each recorded two hits, with the tandem combining for five RBIs.
 
Frantz picked up his ninth win of the season, improving to 9-2, as he gave up just three earned runs while scattering 10 hits over six innings of work. He struck out three and walked just one, while Hoffman and Young pitched three scoreless innings of two-hit, two-strikeout ball out of the 'pen.
 
Head coach Dan Davis' squad advances to Saturday as the only 2-0 team at the regional through the first two days, as Saturday's lineup will see Quincy (1-1) and Drury (1-1) squaring off in an elimination game at 11 a.m., before William Jewell (1-1) and Ashland (1-1) battle in a second elimination game at 3 p.m. Truman will get the QU/DU winner at 7 p.m. in an elimination game for either QU/DU, but not for the Bulldogs.
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