News

Fans filed into the Benedictine University Sports Complex on Friday evening to watch two of the hottest teams in the Midwest Collegiate League square off for the first time.

The Joliet Admirals (3-4) came into the Dog Pound riding a three-game winning streak. The DuPage Hounds (6-0) came into the game still undefeated, winning their first five games of the season.

The Hounds left the complex being victorious once again, as a strong start from Matt Frawley, followed by relief work from Patrick Bellinger and Alex Cain, helped lead the team to a 6-2 win over the Admirals.

Frawley, the winning pitcher, went 5.2 innings and started the game off by retiring the first six hitters for the Admirals. After recording three strikeouts in the first two innings, Frawley went on to strike out seven total batters. Despite allowing an earned run, which was a solo shot from Alec Barnhart in the sixth inning that went over the right field wall, Frawley had a strong outing and limited the Admirals to six hits.

The Hounds’ offense complimented Frawley’s start. Although leaving seven runners on base, the team still managed to score six runs.

After getting on board in the second when Drew Sterioti scored on a sacrifice fly from Clayton Johannes, the Hounds kept the pressure on Tomas Aguila, the losing pitcher for the Admirals, and stuck with the offensive attack.

With six different runners stealing bases, two RBIs by Mike Roberson, and Emerson Misch contributing offensively with a double, triple, and three runs scored, the Hounds offense was exciting yet again.

One of the more controversial plays in the game came in the third inning when Emerson Misch drove the ball into the right-center gap. After Admirals’ centerfielder Jermaine Terry was unable to make the leaping grab on the play, Misch’s hit was originally ruled an error. Ben Caple, the assistant coach for the Hounds, came into the press box during the game to discuss the ruling. As seen through the passion in his defense of Misch’s contact being ruled a hit, it was evident that the Hounds’ offense would not be denied.

The Admirals used four bullpen pitchers in this game. As a unit, the pitching staff allowed seven hits, while the defense committed two costly errors that led to three unearned runs. On a beautiful Friday evening for baseball, the Hounds left with their heads high and a perfect season still in their hands.

The Hounds will play their next game on Saturday, June 7^th at 6:00 PM at the Benedictine University Sports Complex. They will be facing the Lexington Snipes for the first time this season.