March 31, 2010
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
OXFORD, Ohio - Senior left fielder Zak Hatfield and junior right fielder Adam Eaton combined for three home runs and 11 RBI to help lead the Miami University baseball team to a 16-3 victory over the Dayton Flyers Wednesday night at McKie Field at Hayden Park. With the win, Miami (11-12) continued its recent dominance over Dayton (10-15), as the RedHawks have now taken eight of the last nine meetings with the Flyers.
All nine starting RedHawks recorded at least a hit, including seven with multiple hits, as Miami recorded 20 base knocks, the second most this season, while nine RedHawk hurlers combined to scatter nine Dayton hits. Hatfield (Fort Wayne, Ind.) led the offensive charge with a career-high seven RBI, which ties for the most RBI by a RedHawk this season, while going 3-for-5 with a pair of home runs, giving him three on the year. Eaton (Springfield, Ohio) finished 3-for-4 with pair of doubles and his team-leading fifth round-tripper of 2010 while driving in four runs and scoring three. Dayton designated hitter Brian Blasik led the Flyers with a trio of hits.
"We needed to get the bats going and we certainly did that tonight. (This season) we either hit the ball all over the place or teams hold us to very few hits, so we need to find that happy medium," Miami head coach Dan Simonds said. "It's certainly great to see Zak Hatfield come out and do what he did. He's that type of hitter who's capable of doing these things."
Redshirt sophomore hurler Ryan Meyers (Shorewood, Minn.) earned the win on the mound for his first collegiate decision, tossing a scoreless inning with a strikeout, while UD starter Bryce Lahrman (1-3) took the loss, allowing four runs in 2.2 innings.
The 'Hawks jumped on the Flyers early, as a two-run blast by Eaton over the left field wall spotted Miami a 2-0 cushion in the first. Dayton looked to even the game in the top of the second with runners on second and third and one out, but senior reliever Reece Asbury (Centerville, Ohio) forced an infield pop-up and earned a strikeout to keep Miami up 2-0.
The RedHawks made it 6-0 in the third with an RBI single from sophomore designated hitter Jordan Jankowski (McMurray, Pa.) that plated Eaton and a two-out, three-run bomb by Hatfield to right field. The Flyers got on the board in the fourth, scoring an unearned run on a single by Blasik, but Miami plated five runs in the bottom of the frame, including three on Hatfield's second three-run homer of the contest, to make it 11-1.
After the Red and White tacked on two more runs in the fifth, Dayton notched a tally in the sixth, only to see Eaton smoke a two-RBI double in the bottom of the inning to make the score 15-2. Both teams would add a run in the seventh, but the Miami bullpen kept the Flyers in check as the 'Hawks closed out the 16-3 victory. Miami scored in seven of the nine innings during the game, while not allowing more than a single run in any stanza.
"It's good to see our pitchers getting work, staying sharp and not letting the score dictate their focus," Simonds said of the bullpen. "We even had some situations where the bases were loaded or scoring situations and we minimized the damage."
The RedHawks return to the diamond this weekend as they resume Mid-American Conference play at Ball State for a three-game set against the West Division preseason favorite. The series begins Friday at 3 p.m. while Saturday's and Sunday's contests begin at 1 p.m.
--MURedHawks.com--
Notes: Prior to the game, a moment of silence was held in honor of the late Dave Young, a former Miami sports information director and Miami Hall of Famer ... Freshman catcher Nate Bowles made his first career start Wednesday and collected his first collegiate hits, going 2-for-3 ... Senior left fielder Zak Hatfield did not have a multi-RBI game this year until Wednesday when he exploded for a career-high seven RBI ... Junior Bryce Redeker also had seven RBI earlier this year for Miami on Feb. 20 vs. Furman, which ties with Hatfield's showing for the most RBI by a RedHawk this year ... With two home runs Wednesday, Hatfield notched Miami's first individual multi-homer game since May 21, 2009 vs. Bowling Green at the MAC Tournament when Tommy Nurre clubbed two over the fence ... It was Hatfield's third career multi-homer game, also hitting two Feb. 27, 2009 vs. William & Mary and March 13, 2009 vs. Sacred Heart ... The 20 hits were the second most by the RedHawks this year, as Miami totaled 22 hits Feb. 20 vs. Furman, while the 16 runs were the third-most scored by Miami in 2010.
