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Cary, N.C.----Wingate University redshirt junior Hunter Dula waited out a three-and-a-half-hour rain delay Thursday afternoon and ripped the first pitch through the right side to give the #16 Bulldogs a thrilling 5-4 victory over #9 Angelo State on day six of the NCAA Division II baseball national championships. Wingate staves off elimination for the third straight day, improving to 37-13 overall. The Rams fall to 44-8 overall. The two teams meet again Friday in an elimination game, with a spot in Saturday's national title game on the line.

KEY STATS

- Angelo State out-hit Wingate 11-10
- ASU had three of the five extra-base hits; Wingate had the only two homers
- The Rams left 12 on base; the 'Dogs stranded eight
- Angelo State had two of the three stolen bases
- Neither team committed an error
- WU pitching struck out eight and walked five; ASU had three strikeouts and six walks

KEY BULLDOGS

- Dula had a homer and three RBI to lead the offense
- McCann Mellett added a homer and two RBI for the Bulldogs
- Justin Guy was two-for-three with a run scored
- Michael Dansky had a hit and scored the game-winning run
- Gehrig Christopher also had a hit and a run scored
- Austin Mitchell allowed just three runs in seven innings, striking out seven
- Austin Johnson picked up the win in relief

 NOTES

- Wingate is making its first-ever appearance in the Division II World Series
- The Bulldogs are making their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance
- The 'Dogs stave off elimination for the third straight day
- Wingate had to defeat #14 Southern New Hampshire Tuesday and #4 Seton Hill Wednesday
- The Bulldogs are now 6-1 against top-20 opponents in this year's NCAA Tournament
- The 'Dogs also defeated #7 Catawba in the SAC Tourney, giving them seven postseason wins over ranked teams
- Second postseason walk-off win; walked off in SAC Tourney elimination game against Catawba
- Angelo State had won nine straight and 20 of 21
- The Rams average 11 runs per game; held under five runs for just the fifth time this season
- ASU ranks second nationally in runs per game
- WU starting pitchers last three games – 24 1/3 innings, allowing just five runs
- Mitchell has gone at least seven innings in all three postseason starts, allowing six runs in 23 1/3 innings
- He tossed a nine-inning complete game on championship Monday in the SAC Tourney
- Mitchell went seven innings against Columbus State in the regional title game
- He allowed just three runs in those two starts
- Johnson now has a win and a save in the World Series
- Dula has nine homers on the season; six have come in the postseason, four in the NCAA Tourney
- He has three multi-RBI games in the NCAA Tourney, driving in 10 runs overall
- Mellett has a team-best 12 homers on the year; three in the NCAA Tourney
- He has 29 homers in his Bulldog career
- Seven-game hitting streak for Logan McNeely, piling up 13 hits in the stretch
- Guy is now five-for-his last seven over the last three games
- Andrew McKay has a hit in 11 of Wingate's 12 postseason games this season

THIRD INNING

- Christopher drew a four-pitch walk with two outs
- Dula followed with a towering two-run shot to right to put the 'Dogs on top 2-0

FOURTH INNING

- Guy reached on a one-out bunt single
- Mellett followed with by crushing a two-run shot to right to put Wingate on top by four

EIGHTH INNING

- Angelo State plated three in the eighth to make it a one-run game
- An RBI double from Jordan Williams got the Rams on the board
- Parker Bramlett added a two-run single to make it a 4-3 game
- Johnson got a huge strikeout with the bases loaded to end the frame

NINTH INNING

- Aaron Walters started the top of the ninth with a double
- He scored on Nicholas Novak's sacrifice fly to tie it at four
- Dansky lined a one-out single to right in the bottom of the frame
- Bryant and Christopher drew back-to-back two-out walks to load the bases
- Dula came to the plate and worked a 2-2 count in the heavy rain
- The rain was too strong to continue, causing a delay that lasted for three and a half hours
- After the break, Dula wasted no time, ripping the first pitch through the right side to plate Dansky

WRAPUP

- Johnson got the win, moving to 1-0 on the year
- He allowed a run on a hit in 1 1/3 innings, striking out one
- Mitchell threw 125 pitches in 7 1/3 innings, striking out seven
- Austin Buley took the loss, allowing a run on two hits in 4 1/3 innings, falling to 2-1

UP NEXT

- Wingate and Angelo State meet again Friday
- The game is tentatively scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
- Check wingatebulldogs.com and @WU_Bulldogs on Twitter for any update on start time
- The winner advances to championship Saturday
- The other side of the bracket features Central Missouri and Tampa, who play Thursday night
- Friday will be the third meeting between the Bulldogs and the Rams