FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – No. 14 Nova Southeastern made a statement with three runs in each of the first two innings before blowing open the ball game in the sixth on the way to an eventual 10-4 Sunshine State Conference, series-opening victory over Lynn Friday night at the NSU Baseball Complex.
Samuel Duran led yet another strong offensive attack with four hits and four RBI, while
Devin Conn racked up 10 more strikeouts in the effort to extend the Sharks' win streak to 10 in a row.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: Nova Southeastern 10, Lynn 4
Records: Nova Southeastern (24-9, 16-3 SSC), Lynn (20-18, 9-13 SSC)
Location: NSU Baseball Complex | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
Nova Southeastern faced a rare first-inning deficit after Lynn used a two-out double to grab the early 1-0 edge. The lead last lasted all of maybe 10 minutes, though, with the Sharks quickly evening up the contest in the home half on an
Andrew Liberty RBI-single through the left side of the infield. A booted ball by the Fighting Knights' shortstop prolonged the inning and loaded up the bases for Duran, who capitalized with a two-out knock up the middle to hand Nova Southeastern its first advantage of the night at 3-1.
Three consecutive strikeouts by Conn set Lynn down in order in the top of the second and soon flipped things back over to the hot-hitting Shark offense.
Dylan Harris reached with one out in the bottom of the inning on a double down the left-field line and instantly moved to third after collecting his SSC-leading 20
th stolen base of the season. He wouldn't wait at third for long either, as
Nick Gallo mashed his second of three doubles on the night to stretch the margin to 4-1. More miscues from the Lynn defense ensued, and the Sharks continued to take advantage. Following a dropped fly ball in center, Anchia drove in a run on a fielder's choice and would eventually come around to score on a throwing error at third base.
A pair of solo homers allowed the Fighting Knights to hang around before they loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the sixth of a 7-4 ball game. However, as he as shown time and time again this season,
Ryan Maya recorded the timely out when needed, inducing a fly out to left to escape the jam.
Just one half inning removed from nearly tying the game, Lynn watched the Sharks put the clamps down and erase those previous thoughts of a comeback. Back-to-back hits by Gallo and Liberty put runners on the corners with no outs. Anchia was then plunked to load the bases when
Ian Acevedo doubled the lead to 8-4 on a sacrifice fly to left. Two batters later, Duran continued his monster night and all but sealed the 'W' with two more RBI, giving Nova Southeastern its fourth straight game with 10-plus runs.
STATS OF THE NIGHT:
- With his 10 K's on the night, Conn has now reached double-digit strikeouts four times this season – all at home.
- The Sharks' 10-game win streak marks the program's longest ever in SSC play and first of any kind since 2016.
- Friday's win also becomes the first home victory over Lynn since 2012.
UP NEXT:
The Sharks will look to remain hot when both sides meet in game two of the series on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET. For complete coverage of the action, follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_Baseball or visit the
schedule page on NSUSharks.com.
