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Game 1 vs. Joliet Admirals 

Game after game, the boys from DuPage continue to put up astounding numbers in the hits and runs columns. In game one of Tuesday’s doubleheader, the Hounds accounted for a season high 19 hits through only seven innings of play, which ultimately led them to the easy 15-6 victory over the Admirals of Joliet. Of the ten DuPage batters that stepped to the dish, all ten of them walked away with at least one while nine out of the ten batters accounted for at least one RBI.

 

Zac Taylor returned to the lineup after the weekend off where he reclaimed his usual leadoff spot from the hot hitting Joe Duncan. Taylor continued his impressive 11 game hitting streak after going a perfect five for five at the plate with three singles and two doubles while also driving in a season’s best four runs. He also stole his ninth base of the season, which is good enough for second on the team.

 

As usual, the Carrier brothers found themselves hitting back to back in game one, except for this game, Trent slid up one spot into the two hole while Shane followed directly behind him hitting third. Trent reached base three times in his five chances on two walks and single. He also drove in two runs. Shane was one for five with a double and also drove in two more runs for the Hounds.

 

Cleanup man Ryan Fitzgerald shows no signs of cooling off after today’s two for four outing, which included two singles. He also reached base a third time via the walk and added to his RBI total after driving in a run. Fitzgerald’s middle infield counterpart, Dustin Krob immediately followed him in the order where he reached base four times in his five plate appearances on two walks, a single and a double that plated one Hounds’ run.

 

Matt Wollnik hit out of the six hole and went two for five with a single, double and a RBI. Bobby Wenthe continues to show off his speed, legging out a double and triple in two out of his five at bats, while also droving in two RBIs. Starting pitcher Ryan Taylor went one for three with a single.

 

Newcomer Preston Miracle came on in relief and also had the opportunity to bat, going one for two with a RBI single. Finally, Billy Hayes rounded out the Hounds’ hot-hitting lineup, going two for four with a RBI single and a double. 

 

After throwing a three-hit shutout last time out, Ryan Taylor was looking to add on to his late-season dominance. Although the Admirals found an answer to his usually dominating stuff, he still pitched well enough to keep his Hounds in the ballgame and earn his second win of the year. He threw the first four and two thirds innings in which he surrendered six runs on eleven hits. Preston Miracle finished out the remaining two and a thirds frames, allowing no runs on four hits while striking out two.

 

For the Admirals, Anthony Bragg led the way offensively by going three for four with three singles. The combination of John and Zach Thomas went a perfect three for three at the top of the Joliet lineup with two singles, a double and a RBI. Nate Tholl, Chris Hipchen and Danny Kelly all reached base twice on singles. Tyler Paulsen reached base three times on two walks and a two-run single. Micah Coffey and Brad Groleau each went one for four with a single. 

 

The Hounds blew Joliet starter John Thomas off the field after knocking in nine runs on ten hits off of him in only three innings. DuPage didn’t stop there as they grabbed six more runs off of reliever Zach Thomas on nine hits through the final four innings of the contest. 

 

Game 2 vs. Joliet Admirals

It was the same exact story for game two of the doubleheader. In fact, throughout the month of July, it continues to be the same exact story game after game for the Hounds. The bats explode for double digits in hits, the pitching continues to throw strikes and limit the walks and the defense continues to flash their gold glove defense. In game two however, the Admirals did not want to go away quietly. DuPage was cruising with a 7-2 lead going into the sixth when the Admirals scored three to make it 7-5. The Hounds still ended up securing the win despite Joliet having a runner on second with the tying run at the plate in the bottom half of the seventh. The Hounds are currently clicking in all facets of their game and they now have extended their first place MCL lead to a comfortable five games.

 

It would seem absolutely impossible to rest Zac Taylor after his perfect five for five game one performance and it seemed as if manager Sean Osborne agreed. Taylor was penciled back in his familiar leadoff spot where he extended his hit streak to twelve games after going one for three with a single. He also stole another base in game two, giving him a total of ten on the year.

 

Joe Duncan was back in the lineup for game two after getting game one off. He slid down one spot after hitting leadoff the last six games and went two for four with two singles and a RBI. Shane Carrier hit third in the order for the second consecutive game where he went one for three with a RBI single. 

 

The cleanup duties were once again relegated to Ryan Fitzgerald who went one for four with a two-run RBI single. Richie Gorski followed Fitz in the order and reached base three times in his four attempts on a walk and two singles. He also stole two bases in the contest.

 

Dustin Krob continues to tear up the month of July where he has seen his average climb to an impressive .342. He also reached base three times in his four at bats on a walk and two singles while also driving in a run. Hunter Morris locked down the catching duties for game two where he went one for four at the dish with a single that drove in two Hounds’ runs.

 

Nick Alfini got the starting nod after enjoying the last 11 days off. Alfini locked down another impressive win, which moves him to a perfect 6-0 on the season. Tonight, he went five innings in which he gave up four runs on only four hits while striking out three. Richie Gorski came on in emergency relief once again where he continued his mound efficiency. He locked down the final two frames after allowing only one run on four hits while striking out two.

 

For Joliet, Nate Tholl went three for four with two singles, a triple and a RBI. Zach Thomas continues to light up the Hounds offensively. He finished the game with two singles and two RBIs. Chris Hipchen was one for three with a RBI single. Tyler Paulsen and Nick Allgeyer reached twice on a walk and a single. Danny Kelly reached base three times on two walks and a single. Finally, Alex Wolanski went one for four with a single.

 

The starting pitcher for the Admirals was Chris Hipchen who threw the first five innings in which he gave up all seven runs on ten hits while striking out three. Tyler Paulsen came in and threw the final two innings where he was much more efficient, giving up no runs on no hits.

 

The Hounds next ballgame will take place Wednesday, July 22nd at Hap Bruno Field at 5:00 PM (CT) against the Southland Vikings. The Hounds currently lead that series five games to one.