FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Jake Anchia broke a 5-5 tie in the bottom of the eighth with a solo shot to right center, as No. 16 Nova Southeastern upended Sunshine State Conference rival Barry 6-5 to extend its win streak to five games in Friday's series opener.
The win marks the Sharks' second one-run victory in as many tries this season against the Buccaneers, moving head coach
Greg Brown's club to 21-10 overall and 9-4 in the SSC.
Knotted at 5-5, Nova Southeastern had just one base runner reach since the fifth inning when Anchia stepped to the plate with one away in the home half of the eighth. After having already been plunked twice in the ball game, and sitting in a 2-1 count, the Sharks' designated hitter finally received a pitch he could handle and made Barry pay with his ninth big fly of the year.
"I was just trying to work the count and put the pitcher in a stressful situation," said Anchia. "I got the count to 2-1 and got a ball up in the zone that I was able to put a good swing on."
Anchia delivered the most memorable homer of the night, but it was a number of others that set the table for the late-game drama.
Four solo home runs, including three in the fourth inning alone, lifted Barry to a 4-1 cushion early on. The league's second-ranked team in that category didn't wait long to flex its muscle and respond, though. Following a run-scoring double off the bat of
Kevin Suarez in the bottom of the fourth,
Andrew Liberty continued the rally by homering for the second straight game to even up the contest at 4-4. Two batters later,
Sebastian Diaz launched the 3-2 offering from Barry starter Jonathan Hernandez off the scoreboard in left, giving the Sharks the narrow, one-run edge.
As quickly as the momentum had shifted, however, the Bucs quieted the crowd when Justin Lamazares tied the ball game back up with a run-scoring single into right in the ensuing half inning.
A pair of scoreless frames from starter
Matt Hardy kept the game knotted up, though, before reliever
Derik Beauprez put a zero on the board in the eighth to set himself up for the eventual win.
"A lot of guys would crumble in that situation, but I though he put his foot in the ground and really made some pitches when he needed to," Brown said about Hardy. "Our defense played fantastic behind him. It was an exciting team win."
NSU will look to earn the series win when both teams return to the diamond for a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. For complete coverage the action, log onto
NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_Baseball.
TWEETS OF THE NIGHT
