After suffering one of its toughest losses of the year in extra innings Sunday to Maryland, Duke responded with one of its best performances of the young season in a 4-1 victory over LaSalle Tuesday afternoon.
The Blue Devils (6-10) rode their second complete game in five days and outstanding defense to the bounce-back victory at Jack Coombs Field. Starter Tony Bajoczky (1-4) went the distance for Duke, allowing only five hits and one earned run while striking out nine Explorers.
"[Tony] was really aggressive and throwing strikes," head coach Sean McNally said. "He kept the defense on its toes behind him."
The defense behind Bajoczky was a big reason the junior picked up his first win of the season. Freshman catcher Matt Williams caught two Explorers stealing, each time helping prevent LaSalle (1-8) from taking an early lead. Williams caught lead-off man Billy Kern stealing second in the first inning, then nabbed Justin Handler at second with two outs and runners on the corners in the third, allowing Bajoczky and the Blue Devils to escape unscathed.
The Duke fielders had Bajoczky's back again in the fifth, turning a 6-4-3 double play to escape a bases loaded jam and keep the game tied at one. A second double play two innings later ended another potential Explorer rally.
"We played well defensively this weekend [against Maryland], and it's nice to see that carry over," McNally said. "Our pitching and defense gave us an opportunity to win today."
Duke's offense took full advantage of that opportunity, finally breaking the game open with timely hitting in the seventh inning.
Two Duke batters were hit by pitches and Daniel Palmer's bunt loaded the bases for the Blue Devils with nobody out. Unlike Sunday, when Duke squandered a similar chance in the twelfth inning of its loss to Maryland, the Blue Devils got the hits they needed to take the lead.
Javier Socorro knocked in freshman Tim Sherlock with a sacrifice fly to break the tie. The next batter, Williams, came through with the biggest hit of the game, lacing a 2-strike pitch through LaSalle's drawn-in infield for two more runs and a 4-1 advantage.
Bajoczky nailed it down from there, securing the victory with two more scoreless frames. Explorer starter Dan Waters (0-2) took the loss despite striking out seven Blue Devils in six and one-third innings.
"It's especially important after coming off that tough loss to start over and start fresh," McNally said. "I was really proud of the way we responded.
Duke will look to continue its momentum Wednesday, when it once again hosts LaSalle at 3 p.m. Junior Danny Otero (3-0, 0.45 ERA), fresh off a complete game of his own Friday, will take the mound for the Blue Devils.
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