Ivan Del Villar and John Barajas combine for six RBI as Wiley University baseball clinched the series against Dillard University with a 10-4 victory Sunday at Coker Field. The Wildcats (14-13, 8-4 HBCUAC) win their third HBCUAC series and improve to 11-5 at home. They hold a one-game lead in the HBCUAC West Division.

Early Lead and Late Surge

Wiley jumped ahead in the first inning when Ivan Del Villar singled to left-center to drive in Amir Mason. The Wildcats broke the game open with a four-run fifth inning. Del Villar delivered a two-run double down the left-field line and later scored on a Dillard throwing error to extend the lead. Deekota Johnson added an RBI hit-by-pitch later in the frame.

Dillard attempted a comeback, starting with a solo home run by Eddie Velazquez in the sixth. However, Wiley answered in the bottom half of the inning when John Barajas launched a three-run home run to left-center, pushing the Wildcats' advantage to 8-1.

Closing it Out

The Bleu Devils narrowed the gap in the seventh by scoring three runs on a bases-clearing double by Gustavo Torrealba. Wiley added two insurance runs in the eighth following a Dillard fielding error and a sacrifice fly by Johnson.

Key Performances:

• Ivan Del Villar: Finished 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs.

• John Barajas: Finished 1-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs.

• Estevan Baca: Earned the win (4-0), pitching 7.0 innings and allowing four runs.

• Nick Rodriguez: Earned his first save of the season, striking out five batters over 2.0 hitless innings of relief. 

Wiley will visit Southern University at New Orleans on Saturday and Sunday.