The Bulldogs began district play tonight with a home game against the Marshall Buffaloes. Starting Pitcher Ryan Dalton set the tone early, getting a line out and two strikeouts to start the game. The Bulldogs then took control in the bottom of the first. SS Barrett Barnes led the attack with a lead-off double to left, and he was followed by consecutive RBI singles by CF Daniel Rockett and P Ryan Dalton. The Buffalo starter, Norceso Pittman, then ran into trouble finding the strike zone, walking 6 of the next 8 batters, all of which would eventually score to make it 9-0 after the first.

The Bulldogs would add to that total in the second, racking up another 5 runs on 4 hits and a couple of errors. RF Tony Gigliotti led off with a single to right, and Luke Mulcahey made it two aboard when his grounder to third was misplayed. 1B Drew Miller knocked in the first run of the inning with an RBI single to left to score Gigliotti, and Mulcahey came home on Rockett’s dropped infield pop-up. Dalton then cashed in two more runs with a double, scoring Miller and Rockett. LF Blake Doerr closed out the scoring that inning with an RBI single. The Bulldogs would tack on a pair of unearned runs in the third, with Hills scoring on Barnes smash to third base, and Miller scoring on Rockett’s single.

On the other side of the ledger, Dalton kept racking up strikeouts, striking out the side in the second and the first batter in the third to make it 6 K’s in a row. He would end up with 7 K’s on the evening before turning over the hill to the bullpen. Clint VanTilborg took care of the fourth with two strikeouts looking and a groundout. A.J. Glasshof then handled the fifth. After giving up a first-pitch lead off single which spoiled the no-hitter, he struck out the next three batters to end the game and give the Bulldogs their first district win of the year.

Next up for the Bulldogs is the Alvin Yellowjacket Tournament this-coming Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The Bulldogs then continue district play next week with road games at Hightower and Willowridge, and a home date with the Travis Tigers.

Bulldog Offensive Highlights:

· 8 hits for the Bulldogs, including 2 for extra bases: a double and a single for P Ryan Dalton; two singles for CF Daniel Rockett; a double for SS Barrett Barnes; and a single each for LF Blake Doerr, RF Tony Gigliotti, and 1B Drew Miller.

· 9 RBIs on the game: 4 for Dalton, 2 for Rockett, 1 each for Barnes, Doerr, and Miller.

Bulldog Pitching Highlights:

· Ryan Dalton (3-0, 1-0), 3 innings, 7 K’s, 1 BB, 1 HPB, 0 hits, 0 runs

· Clint VanTilborg, 1 inning, 2 K’s, 0 runs

· A.J. Glasshof, 1 inning, 1 hit, 3 K’s, 0 runs

Bulldog Defensive Highlights:

· Liner to CF Daniel Rockett for the first out of the game.

· Two foul-tip strike-three catches by C Matt Hills

· Infield chopper hit to no-man’s land, but P Ryan Dalton makes a great pickup-and-throw to 1B Drew Miller for the 1-3 putout in the third.

· 1B A.J. Glasshof makes a good scoop on the throw from SS Barrett Barnes for the 6-3 groundout to end the fourth.

Winning Pitcher: Ryan Dalton (3-0, 1-0)

Losing Pitcher: Norceso Pittman

Extra Base Hits, FBA: 2B – Barnes, Dalton

Other News:

Erik Schweiger named H5AB Hitter of the Week for Week #2.

Also nominated – Ryan Dalton, Drew Miller, Luke Mulcahey, and Blake Doerr. Check out this link to H5AB:

http://houston5abaseball.yuku.com/topic/11105/t/Colt-45-Baseball-H5AB-Hitter-Of-The-Week-2-2009.html

Score by inning:

Submitted by: Tom Miller