CARY, N.C. - The University of Dayton baseball team swept Western Michigan in a doubleheader on Saturday, topping the Broncos 7-6 in the opener and turning around to take the finale 8-4 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.
 
Sophomore Ryan MacDougall drove in four runs and hit two doubles while junior newcomer Peyton Malecha fanned nine in four innings of work on the mound to lead UD to victory in the day's opener.
 
Sophomore newcomer Martin Howell had three hits including a clutch two-out, two-run home run in the final inning of game two.
 
Junior Peyton Malecha was stellar in his first UD start, striking out nine in four innings of work in the first game. Sophomore Ayden Tran fanned four in three innings to pick up the save in the nightcap.

GAME ONE
Dayton 7, Western Michigan 6
The #FlyBoys jumped ahead early, scoring five runs in the first inning. Sophomore Ryan MacDougall set the tone with a bases-loaded double to plate the first three runs of the game.
 
MacDougall came through again with his second double of the day in the next inning, driving home another to put UD ahead 6-2.
 
After the Broncos scratched across three runs over the next four innings of play, Dayton plated another run courtesy of a sacrifice fly by Dyrenson Wouters that brought home Bobby Stang.
 
WMU scored one more to bring it back to a 7-6 game, but newcomer Ben Dean slammed the door for the Flyers in the ninth to secure the first victory of the season.
 
Dayton starter Peyton Malecha set a new high-water mark for strikeouts for a Flyer pitcher this season, fanning nine Broncos. Sophomore Michael DiMartini had a two-hit game, while freshman Rylan Lujo scored a pair of runs. Both Alejandro Cazorla and Ty Mainolfi reached base twice courtesy of walks.

BY THE NUMBERS
481 – the first win for head coach Scott Loiseau was the 481st of his career
10 – strikeouts by Dayton pitching, including nine from Peyton Malecha
5 – Flyers to reach base multiple times in the contest (2 hits – DiMartini/MacDougall, 2 walks – Cazorla/Mainofli, 1 hit, 1 HBP)
4 – RBI for Ryan MacDougall, his season high

GAME TWO
Dayton 8, Western Michigan 4
The Flyers and Broncos were in a tight contest from the start, but Martin Howell put the exclamation point on the game with a towering two-run homer to left in the seventh inning to give Dayton its 8-4 cushion.
 
After UD scored a single run in the top of the first, Western Michigan came back to plate three in their half of the frame.
 
Dayton struck back by scratching in the second, taking advantage of a Broncos error to plate a pair.
 
The Flyers scored two more runs in the fourth to take the lead, 5-3, as a sacrifice fly from Dyrenson Wouters plated one and an RBI single from Aiden Heberlie.
 
Western Michigan scored another run of their own to pull within one at 5-4, but Dayton got it back in the sixth with another Bronco error on a DiMartini infield single.
 
Sophomore Ayden Tran finished the final three innings to pick up the save for Dayton, while freshman Carson Samuels earned his first career win.

BY THE NUMBERS
4 – strikeouts for Ayden Tran in three innings of work
3 – extra-base hits for the Flyers (HR – Howell, 2B – Dobie, Mainolfi)
1 – home run for Martin Howell, the first of his collegiate career
 
UP NEXT
The #FlyBoys open the 2025 home campaign at Woerner Field at AES Ohio Stadium on Tuesday, Feb. 18 against Northern Kentucky at 2 p.m.

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