Despite a rough week for the Dragons that included a 4-3 win over Pembroke, and three straight losses to Scituate (8-6), Silver Lake (5-3), and Dennis-Yarmouth (12-0), there still remains an outside chance that Duxbury could earn a spot in the MIAA Division II playoffs.

While a 5-10 record with six games remaining in the regular season gives the Dragons a mathematical chance of qualifying with an above .500 record, their best bet for qualifying remains by finishing in second place in the Keenan Division of the Patriot League.

A ruling that a second-place club in a five-team league makes the playoffs appears to be Duxbury’s best chance, although it is a long shot.

Duxbury’s Clint Bylo scattered nine hits and struck out four in the loss to Silver Lake, while Tyler llerena got the win for the Lakers by striking out seven in five innings before being replaced by Tucker Bouchard, who escaped a bases-loaded jam with a strikeout in Duxbury’s sixth inning.

Pitching staff depth that has plagued Duxbury all season long and was a main concern of Coach Gordon Cushing before the season started reared its ugly head on Thursday, as Cushing was forced to go with senior Jake Wong as his starter on Thursday.

Normally the starting center fielder, Wong was called on to make his varsity pitching debut against Dennis-Yarmouth and lasted into the third inning before being replaced by senior catcher Joe Coyne.

Junior Mason Crane and sophomore Kevin Winchester also took the mound for the Dragons in relief.

Wong did show his versatility at the plate, lashing a triple over the centerfielder’s head in the bottom of the seventh, only to be stranded at third by the pitching of D-Y’s Dan Creel.

The pitching staff will be tested again this week, as the Dragons play four games in five days with home games against North Quincy on Wednesday afternoon and Hingham on Friday afternoon.