CARY, N.C. - Team Navy used a five-run first inning and held off a late push by Team Red to win, 9-7, in 2021 PDP League action at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina on Thursday evening.

After the strong opening frame, Team Navy kept the pressure on and led 7-0 after three. Team Red rallied for seven runs in the final three innings, but Team Navy held off the late push to secure the win.

Owen Murphy (2-for-2), Nazier Mule (2-for-3), and Sal Stewart (2-for-2) led the Team Navy offense with multi-hit games. Mule had a game-high three RBIs, also adding a run.

Elijah Green (1-for-2), Jack Lausch (1-for-2), Tommy Specht (1-for-3), Tucker Toman (1-for-1), and Jason Torres (1-for-3) all picked up hits for Team Red. Specht led the team with two RBIs.

Ian Ritchie Jr. earned the win in relief for Team Navy, tossing two hitless frames with a pair of strikeouts. Lucas Kelly got the loss for Team Red, allowing five runs in 1.1 innings of work.

Key Moments

• Team Navy's offense got started quickly, scoring its first run on an RBI single by Stewart. Mule followed with a two-run single up the middle to make it 3-0.
• Paxton Kling made it 4-0 with an RBI single and eventually scored to give Team Navy a 5-0 lead.
• Toman singled and Green walked to put the first two runners on for Team Red in the bottom of the first, but Team Navy pitcher Blaise Grove escaped the jam unscathed.
• Team Navy added a run in the second on a wild pitch before scoring another in the third on Mule's RBI triple to extend the lead to 7-0.
• Toman walked and got into scoring position with one out in the bottom of the third, but Ian Ritchie Jr. worked around it to pitch a scoreless inning.
• After a scoreless fourth, both teams put up runs in the fifth inning. Stewart singled and scored on an error in the top of the inning to make it 8-0.
• Team Red cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the fifth. Kaden Martin walked and scored on a Lausch double to get on the board before Lausch scored on an error to make it 8-2.
• Green led off the sixth with a double before Luke Heyman walked to put a pair of runners on. Green later scored on a wild pitch and two more runs were added to trim the deficit to 8-5.
• Termarr Johnson doubled to left field in his first at-bat of the game, driving in Caden Dana to give Team Navy a 9-5 lead in the sixth.
• Specht singled home two runs in the seventh to put the tying run at the plate before Matthew Hoskins induced a fly out to secure the win for Team Navy.

Notable Information

• Stewart scored a game-high three runs, also driving in a run.
• All five Team Navy pitchers recorded at least one strikeout.
• Team Navy moves to 2-1-1 with the win, and Team Red drops to 1-3.

On Deck

• Friday, July 30: Team Light Blue vs. Team Red (1:00 p.m. ET; Cary, N.C.; National Training Complex)
• Friday, July 30: Team Navy vs. Team Gray (5:00 p.m. ET; Cary, N.C.; National Training Complex)
• Saturday, July 31: TBD vs. TBD (1:00 p.m. ET; Cary, N.C.; National Training Complex)
• Saturday, July 31: TBD vs. TBD (5:00 p.m. ET; Cary, N.C.; National Training Complex)

Social

• Stay tuned to @BaseballPDP on Twitter for the most up-to-date news about the 2021 PDP League.