FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The No. 15 Nova Southeastern baseball team (19-6, 5-4 SSC) are set for a big Sunshine State Conference series against the Saintt Leo Lions (16-8, 0-3 SSC) on Friday and Saturday at the NSU Baseball Complex. The Friday night game will kick-off the series at 6 p.m. and will conclude with Saturday's doubleheader starting at 1 p.m.
The Sharks enter this weekend's series following a shocking upset against St. Thomas on the road Monday night. The Sharks dominated the early stages of the game, jumping out to a 7-0 lead after three innings. The combination of the Bobcats' bullpen and bats brought the home team back inning-by-inning, before eventually tying the game up in the seventh. The Bobcats completed the rally, with a walk-off sacrifice fly in the bottom 11th to top the Sharks, 8-7.
Brooks Fleming (Sr., Palm City, Fla.) was the bright spot in the NSU order, going 3-for-4 with two RBI in the loss.
The Sharks will look for some revenge against their conference foe, after being swept by Lions a season ago in St. Leo, Fla.
The Lions come into the series on a bit of a roll, winning four of their last five contests, all of which were out of conference opponents. SLU has played just one conference series to this point, coming against the top team in the nation, Tampa. The Spartans swept the Lions, but not without a fight from SLU. Tampa easily got the better of the Lions in the Friday game, dominating 10-1. However, the Lions lost the last two games, each by just one run, 4-3 and 9-8, respectively. The Spartans had to make final inning heroics in both games, for two comeback wins.
Dylan Harris and Taylor Perez have carried the heavy bats early on in the season for SLU. Harris boasts a .354 average, to go along with a team-high three home runs. Perez is right behind Harris, batting .344 with two home runs.
Michael Dunnigan has been the Friday night pitcher for the Lions of late. Dunnigan (4-1), in 33.2 innings pitched, has a 4.01 ERA and averages a little over three strikeouts per outing. The Sharks could see Liam O'Sullivan on the mound on Saturday. O'Sullivan (2-2) has one complete game in 38 innings pitched and has 5.45 ERA.
The Sharks have proven to be a tough team to beat at home, boasting a 13-3 record at the NSU Baseball Complex, heading into Friday.
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