The Bulldogs beat the Vikings when it counted, winning 7-2 tonight in both teams’ district opener, and avenging their loss to the Vikings this past Saturday in the Ewell Jackson Tournament.

The Bulldogs didn’t waste any time getting on the board, scoring their first run in the bottom of the first. A leadoff walk to SS Scott Viktorin and a single by CF Daniel Rockett set the table, but they were still there 2 outs later on two hard hit outs by 2B Barrett Barnes and LF Adam Shank. 3B Ryan Dalton, though, came through with a 2-out, 2-strike single to bring home Viktorin.

The Vikings tied it up at 1 apiece in the top of the third. Two singles started the inning for Dulles, but the Bulldogs snuffed out that rally with a nifty 6-4-3 double play. With two outs and a man on third, McKinney was called for a balk to score the runner. The Bulldogs got that run back and more in the bottom-half of the inning. An error and a walk put on Rockett and Barnes. Shank followed with a single to the outfield that scored Rockett, who dislodged the ball from the catcher when he didn’t make a clean catch. Dalton followed with a sacrifice fly to score Barnes, making the score 3-1. The Vikings trimmed the lead in the top of the fourth on a couple of singles, a passed ball, and a slow roller to second base. That, though, would be as close as the Vikings would get the rest of the evening.

The Bulldogs tacked on a pair of insurance runs in both the fifth and the sixth innings. Dalton got things started with a double over the left fielder, and DH Blake Doerr was hit by a pitch. C Drew Miller put down a sacrifice bunt, but the throw to first was wide, allowing Dalton to score and Miller to sail into second. With the infield in to try to limit the damage, Dulles was fortunate to get an out when 1B Benn Fairbanks smashed a one-hopper right at the shortstop. RF Tony Gigliotti followed with a sacrifice fly to center to bring home Doerr. In the sixth, the Bulldogs had two out when Doerr singled, Miller walked, and Fairbanks was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Gigliotti had a great at-bat, fouling off 3 pitches before dropping a single into the outfield to bring home Doerr and pinch-runner Matt Baughman.

Offensive highlights:

· 7 hits for the Bulldogs: A double and single by 3B/P Ryan Dalton, and singles for CF Daniel Rockett, LF Adam Shank, DH Blake Doerr, C Drew Miller, and RF Tony Gigliotti

· 6 RBIs on the game, three from Gigliotti, two for Dalton, and one by Shank. The seventh run scored on the errant throw on Miller’s bunt.

· C Drew Miller was on base all 4 times tonight, on a hit, two walks, and his misplayed bunt.

· In the “patience pays off”, “rub some dirt on it”, and “good things happen when you hit the ball” departments: the Bulldogs drew 6 walks, were hit-by-pitch 3 times, and reached safely 4 times on fielding errors. Those 13 baserunners accounted for 5 of the 7 Bulldog runs.

Pitching highlights:

· Caleb McKinney (2-0, 1-0 district), 4 innings, 3 K’s, 2 BB’s, 4 hits, 2 runs, 1 earned run, for the victory.

· Ryan Dalton, 3 innings, 6 K’s, 1 BB, 1 hit, 0 runs – Save #1

Defensive highlights:

· Viktorin to Barnes to Fairbanks for a double play in the third inning.

· Daniel Rockett racing in and making a diving catch on a line drive for the first out in the sixth inning.

· Scott Viktorin diving to his left, getting up, and firing to first for the first out in the seventh inning.

· Inspired by each of those last two plays, Dalton struck out the next two batters both times to finish those innings.

Score by inning: