CHARLESTON, Ill. – The Eastern Illinois baseball team (4-12, 0-0 OVC) completed their first shutout of the season with a 4-0 win over Dayton (11-8, 0-0 A10) on Saturday afternoon. EIU starter Bryce Riggs pitched seven and two-thirds scoreless innings to carry the Panthers over the Flyers.

Neither offense could get much going through the first half of the game, as both freshman starters combined to allow just three hits and no runs entering the bottom of the fifth.

With one out, Cole Gober singled to left field to break up Dayton pitcher Connor Fennell's no-hitter after four and a third innings. The knock opened up the floodgates, as Robby Taul reached on a walk in the next at-bat before a Tyler Castro bunt single loaded up the bases.

Enter Dylan Drumke, who with just one swing of the bat flipped the game on its head with a grand slam to open up a 4-0 Panthers lead. It made back-to-back games with a home run for the Eastern lead-off man.

Now with a comfortable lead, Bryce Riggs kept things rolling on the mound, allowing just one hit and one walk over his final two and two-thirds innings of action.

With two outs in the eighth, EIU skipper Jason Anderson called on the services of Chaney Trout to finish off the win for Eastern. Trout would answer the call, as he retired his first two batters faced before getting a 5-4-3 double play ball to close out the game.

Bryce Riggs threw a gem of a game for the Panthers. The freshman right-hander from Cicero, Indiana allowed no runs on just three hits while compiling six strikeouts through his 7.2 innings of work. It was the longest outing for an EIU pitcher this season.

Dylan Drumke's grand slam brought his season RBI total to nine, which is second most on the team this season.

The victory was the Panthers' first nine-inning shutout since their 2-0 win at St. Louis on March 22nd of last year.

The series rubber match is slated for 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, as Eastern will look to pick up their first series win of the season.