FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – No. 16 Nova Southeastern continued its quality play, especially against Barry, early on Saturday by beating the Buccaneers 12-8 before falling 12-0 in the weekend finale at the NSU Baseball Complex. Highlighted by a Jeremy Vasquez three-run blast, the Sharks managed to secure the Sunshine State Conference series win after overcoming a four-run deficit in game one of the afternoon. The Buccaneers controlled game two of the day from start to finish, but not before Nova Southeastern was able to reel off its sixth win in seven tries overall and eighth in its last nine meetings over its SSC counterpart.
Game One
Following Friday's dramatic, one-run victory, the Sharks came out a bit sluggish to begin the afternoon on Saturday. A Kevin Suarez two-run shot pulled Nova Southeastern even at 2-2 in the bottom of the second. However, Barry sandwiched a pair of two-run innings around a one-run fourth to jump in front by a 7-3 margin.
After limiting the damage out of the bullpen, southpaw Jonny Ortiz turned the fifth inning over to his offense and was instantly rewarded. A one-out single by Sebastian Diaz and a Dylan Woods hit-by-pitch set the table for Vasquez, who became a crowd favorite after his three-run dinger not only narrowed the gap to 7-6, but also earned free Mr. M's subs for all fans in attendance.
A scoreless sixth worked by Ortiz kept the one-run margin intact when Diaz answered the call with a two-run double down the right field line in the home half of the frame to push the Sharks ahead for the first time in the ball game.
Diaz later tacked on a sacrifice fly to center as part of a four-run, seventh that capped a stretch of nine unanswered runs to put the game out of reach.
Barry would eventually scratch across a run in the top of the eighth off Ortiz, putting just about the only flaw on an impressive stat line for the senior. After taking over for starter Devin Meyer, Ortiz surrendered the lone run in 4.2 innings of work, while striking out three en route to his third victory of the season.
Game Two
Nova Southeastern dug itself into a considerable hole once again in the series finale, only this time the deficit proved insurmountable.
Scoreless through two innings, Barry opened up a three-run cushion in the top of the third thanks to a two-run single by Alffredi Ramos. The third inning was just the start, though, as the Bucs responded with seven more runs in the fourth to force the Sharks into a double-digit, uphill battle.
Jake Anchia and Michael Hernandez each tallied hits, while Diaz extended his current hit streak to eight games with a 1-for-2 effort. However, Nova Southeastern was limited to just two baserunners from the third inning on in what marked its second time being shut out in 2017.
NSU will continue its six-game home stand next Friday when it welcomes Palm Beach Atlantic to town for the start of a three-game series. The Sharks knocked off the Sailfish 14-5 earlier this season in a midweek matchup back on February 14. For complete coverage of the action, log onto NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_Baseball.
