Dickinson Dominates as Troy Downs MTSU

Friday, April 16

Troy, Ala.

6:00 pm

Troy University

Middle Tennessee

4/17/2010 2:00:00 AM | Baseball

Troy University senior Andrew Dickinson held Middle Tennessee to just one run on five hits Friday night in a 10-1 Trojans victory over the Blue Raiders at Riddle-Pace Field.

For Dickinson (4-3) it was his second straight complete game performance, but his first in a win. He dropped a 6-0 decision to ULL last week.

“I felt good tonight,” Dickinson said. “Everything was working. I was able to get ahead with the sinker, and was able to throw strikes with the change up. After that, I had them off balance and was able to get them out with the slider.”

The victory for the Trojans (18-16, 5-8 in Sun Belt) snapped a four-game league losing skid. Middle Tennessee (20-14, 9-7) dropped its third straight game overall. The same two teams will meet on Saturday in the second game of the weekend series.

Dickinson had just one bad inning last week in the loss to ULL. Against MTSU, he made just one bad pitch. Blue Raiders' All-American Bryce Brentz, who was in the starting lineup for the first time in 13 games because of an ankle injury, hit a two-out solo homer to right in the second.

“I can't ask for anything more than that,” Trojans coach Bobby Pierce said. “The story was Andrew and how well he pitched. He has pitched well all year and kept us in every game, we just haven't scored many runs for him. Other than the one pitch to Brentz, which was a good pitch, he made every pitch all night. I'd probably have to go back to Brent Adcock to remember a dominating start on a Friday night like that.”

After the second inning, Dickinson allowed just three singles the rest of the way, walked just one and tied a career-high with eight strikeouts. Since the four-run third inning last week at ULL, Dickinson has pitched 17 innings for the Trojans, allowing one run on eight hits.

“He's been giving us that kind of outing and that type of Friday night intensity,” Pierce said. “We have not rewarded him in several Friday nights. What a great step for Andrew. He is a guy who has had some surgery, came back and took some beatings but is now a dominant Friday night guy.”

The Trojans did reward Dickinson with some run support on Friday against the preseason Sun Belt Conference pitcher of the year. Senior left-hander Kenneth Roberts (2-3) was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Sun Belt Tournament the last time he was on the mound in Troy, but on Friday he allowed six earned runs on 10 hits over 6.2 innings.

The two most productive hitters for the Trojans were second baseman T.J. Rivera and catcher Todd McRae. Both drove in four runs in the game, but McRae produced with hits in three at bats.

Over the last three games McRae has seven hits in 11 at bats.

“Todd McRae is a guy who, like Shohei (Fujita), never quits working,” Pierce said. “He has started to figure some things out. He has really looked good at the plate his last few times out and he was rewarded for all of his hard work tonight.”

Rivera plated a single run in the first on a sacrifice fly, then delivered a two-run triple in the fifth inning. He plated his fourth run in the eighth when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.

McRae had a single in the fifth to score Rivera, a two-out single in the seventh to score Chase Whitley, who had doubled, and a two-run, two-out single in the Trojans' four-run eighth inning. It was Troy's only hit in the frame.

“I have been working hard in practice and the coaches have been trying to get me where I need to be and I was seeing it well tonight,” McRae said. “I am just trying to get into a situation where I can put the barrel of the bat on the ball and I was able to do that.”

Whitley had two hits and scored three runs for Troy and Daniel Peterson had a good game, with an RBI single in the fourth and a walk, stolen base, and run in the eighth.

The Trojans will send sophomore right-hander Tyler Ray to the mound on Saturday when they try to take the series. Ray struggled in his last start and will be looking for a return to his normal form.

“Hopefully tonight will help us keep moving forward,” Pierce said. “We feel good about our chances with Tyler Ray on the mound tomorrow night. I talked to him a lot tonight about the focus and intensity Andrew had on the mound and that is what Tyler has to get back to. I am looking forward to seeing him pitch tomorrow night.”