FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Coming into Saturday's doubleheader with the series lead over Saint Leo (17-17, 6-9 SSC), the No. 21 Nova Southeastern baseball team (23-13, 12-9 SSC) split with the Lions at the NSU Baseball Complex and earned a key Sunshine State Conference series win as the season heads into its final weeks.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Game 1 Score: Nova Southeastern –
12, Saint Leo –
3
Game 2 Score: Saint Leo –
15, Nova Southeastern –
7
Records: Nova Southeastern (23-13, 12-9 SSC), Saint Leo (17-17, 6-9 SSC)
Location: NSU Baseball Complex | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
Despite the fact that game one saw starter
Nathan Campbell take an early exit in the second inning, the early innings went straight to a pitcher's duel, as junior southpaw
Matt Ornelas squared up with Saint Leo's McCabe Sargent to keep the first four innings of the doubleheader blank.
However, as Ornelas continued into an extended relief appearance, things broke down for Sargent and the Lions, beginning with a huge offensive outburst for the Sharks in the bottom of the fourth. After
Garrett Wolforth coaxed out a four-pitch walk to lead off the frame, he crossed the plate on the very next pitch, as
Ian Acevedo crushed an RBI triple deep in the left center alley - past a diving SLU center fielder for the Sharks lead.
Christian Demby cashed Acevedo in with a sacrifice fly and things started to unravel further for the Lions. After consecutive walks,
Brandon Chinea shot an RBI single through the left side and kicked off three consecutive scoring hitters for NSU – also sending SLU to the bullpen.
Still in the fourth and battling out a 10-pitch at bat, complete with six consecutive fouled-off pitches,
Duncan Pastore sent an RBI single up the middle to score
Samuel Duran. Chinea proceded to steal home on a delayed double steal with Pastore, and
Andrew Labosky capped a seven-run frame with a two-run no-doubter to left field.
With the Lions on the run, the Sharks kept pushing in the fifth, as
Daniel Irisarri made it three straight base hits to open the inning, bringing home Acevedo and Demby on a double to left center – just shy of another NSU home run. Duran made it double digits for NSU with an RBI single through the left side.
Twice more the Sharks added runs – in the sixth on a Demby RBI single and in the seventh on a Chinea RBI groundout – pushing the Sharks ahead with a statement 12-0 lead.
In the meantime, Ornelas (W, 2-1) was flat-out dealing, extending his outing a full seven innings for the win, holding a one-hit shutout with six strikeouts through the eighth. With Ornelas gone, the Lions came firing back for three runs in the ninth, but the lead proved insurmountable in the 12-3 NSU win.
The way the Sharks were hitting in the series - .338 as a team with 18 runs through the first two games – it would take a strange turn of events to slow the offense enough for the Lions to snap a 17-game NSU win streak in the series. That is exactly what transpired, as SLU quickly loaded up the bases on walks and moved ahead in the first on a Jared Morello RBI walk – forcing NSU to go away from their starter early, in this case
Nik Sanders, for the second game in a row. A two-run PJ Barry single followed and a third run scored on an error for a 4-0 SLU lead right out of the gate.
Tackling the deficit immediately, the Sharks pulled ahead in the home half. Acevedo got things moving with an RBI single and Irisarri added an RBI walk.
Mike Rojas reached on an error but brought home a run – while Duran fired a two-run shot up the middle to push NSU to a 5-4 advantage.
Keeping momentum into the second, Labosky led off the frame with the second of his three walks in the nightcap, crossing the dish on a Wolforth triple roped straight down the right field line. After Demby sent Wolforth home on an RBI groundout, it looked as though the Sharks may have things back under control.
After seeing three runs score on his watch, reliever
Gil Torres settled in and carried the Sharks through two scoreless innings with the lead. However, a throwing error extended the inning and allowed the Lions to tie the score, then Peyton Isaacson's three-run homer edged the Lions back on top in the fourth, 8-7.
In spite of the hot hitting, the relief team of Joey Antonopoulos (W, 4-3) and Brady McGarry (SV, 2) combined to hold the Sharks without a hit beyond the second inning. In the meantime, the Lions offense netted seven additional runs to their lead, ballooning to a 15-7 advantage to snap the NSU series win streak.
STATS OF THE DAY:
- The Sharks lead the series with SLU 40-19 overall.
- Prior to Saturday, the Lions had not defeated the Sharks in 17 games, the last NSU loss to SLU coming in 2013.
- Another streak broken in the finale, the Sharks had reeled off 17 consecutive home wins – suffering the first loss since 2008 to the Lions at home.
- On the day, Duran hit .750 (3-for-4 with three walks) to lead NSU, scoring once with three RBI.
- Across the two games, NSU successfully stole eight bases, led by Labosky and Irisarri with two apiece – while picking off 2-of-4 would-be SLU base thieves.
- In the first game of the day, nine NSU batters combined for the 13 NSU hits.
- In the finale, the teams combined to issue 16 walks, committed a combined seven errors.
- On the day 24 total walks were issued.
FROM COACH GREG BROWN
UP NEXT:
The Sharks are in Miami Shores on Tuesday night for the second week in a row, slated for a second midweek non-conference affair at Barry, scheduled for a 6:00 p.m. at Feinbloom Field. For complete coverage of the action, follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_Baseball or visit the
schedule page on NSUSharks.com.
