Redhawks take two of three against #22 Dallas Baptist University in opening series

The Redhawks baseball team proved the projections right as they took two of three games from #22 DBU in the Opening series, finishing first in the OVC baseball rankings.

Senior pitcher Bryce Grossius posted six strikeouts while allowing two earned runs in 3.2 innings of work in game one of the three-game set.

Grossius was backed by his bats, as senior lead-off man Jevon Mason put the Redhawks ahead in extra innings with his RBI triple that led to sophomore pitcher Kyle Miller recording the first win of the season.

Other notables in game one of the series were Andrew Keck, who recorded two hits, including a double. First basemen Lincoln Andrews also recorded a hit and an RBI in the season opener.

Senior pitcher Noah Niznik was handed the ball in game two as he recorded four strikeouts in 3 innings of work. Niznik was ultimately pulled after the third inning, allowing three runs.

The Redhwaks looked to their bullpen in game two as senior pitcher Jason Rackers posted 5.2 innings, junior pitcher Blake Cisneros pitched a third of an inning picking up the win, and senior pitcher Austin Williams was credited with the save, resulting in a Redhawks win by the score of 6-5.

Notable offensive players in game two of the three-game set included junior outfielder Joel Vaske, who recorded a home run in his one at-bat that resulted in three runs being driven in. Freshman outfielder Ryan Malzahn recorded one hit and had one RBI on the day.

This decisive game two went into extra innings for the second day in a row and found one runner on second base in the top of the tenth inning for center fielder Brett Graber. Graber drove in the runner from second base, resulting in an RBI single, which gave the Redhawks a 6-5 lead and contributed to their series win.

Williams was handed the ball for the last game of the series and the potential sweep.

Williams ended up pitching two innings, recording two strikeouts while allowing four runs, with two of them being home runs.

The Redhawks bullpen had its busiest day yet as seven pitchers were used in this third game of the series, allowing nine total runs and 11 hits total.

Although it was a rough day for the pitching staff of the Redhawks, the offensive side of the plate had a few notables in the lineup.

Andrews put up two hits, with one of them being a 450-foot home run and recorded a double, as well. Wilber and Vaske each recorded a double and an RBI in three at-bats.

The final score of game three was 13-5 as Dallas Baptist University took the final game of the three-game set to open the 2022 campaign.

The Redhawks look to bounce back as they play their first home game Friday, Feb. 25, against the Bellarmine Knights.