Sophomore catcher R.J. Knese went 5-for-6 with three runs and a pair of RBIs as part of a 20-hit attack as Drury pounded out a 12-5 victory over Truman State to take two of three in the weekend series from the Bulldogs Sunday afternoon at Meador Park.
Freshman second baseman Maury Wilmes went 3-for-3 with a pair of runs scored and an RBI and juniors Jason Hall, Joe Rohlfing and Harrison Waters and sophomore Joel Potts had two hits each as the Panthers (4-6) broke it open in the middle innings for the victory.
Drury led 4-1 after five innings with single runs in each of the first four innings before breaking it open with three runs in the sixth and five in the seventh. Knese had an RBI single, Rohlfing a run-scoring triple and Waters another RBI single in the sixth, while the key blows in the seventh were a two-run double by Rohlfing and a two-run single from pinch-hitter Bret Gallion.
The offense provided plenty of support for starting pitcher Waters (1-0), as the lefty allowed just two hits and a run over five innings of work, striking out two and walking two.
Junior right-hander Chris Marston, the Panthers' ace last season, made his debut after arm problems in the fall and pitched a scoreless sixth, while junior righty Carl Teghtmyer struck out five while allowing just one hit in the seventh and eighth before the Bulldogs (1-8) touched Tim Payne for four runs in the ninth.
The Panthers, who split a double-header with Truman State on Friday to open the series, stole six bases in the contest, including a pair by junior Dane Hughes.
Drury returns to action on Friday, visiting Harding in Searcy, Ark., for a pair of non-conference games before hosting Wisconsin-Parkside in two next Sunday that, while UW-P is a league member, do not count in the Great Lakes Valley Conference standings.
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