April 14, 2024
Bucs Split Pair of Extra Inning Contests With Patriots
The #16 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers went the distance and then some Saturday afternoon in Ocala, winning a back and forth 11-9 extra innings thriller in game one against Central Florida before falling 7-6 in walk off fashion in another extra innings contest in game two to split the doubleheader and win the series from the Patriots 2-1.
OCALA, Fla.- The #16 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers went the distance and then some Saturday afternoon in Ocala, winning a back and forth 11-9 extra innings thriller in game one against Central Florida before falling 7-6 in walk off fashion in another extra innings contest in game two to split the doubleheader and win the series from the Patriots 2-1.
Early on in game one it looked like it might be a pitcher's dual between the Bucs and Patriots as the teams traded zeros through the first two innings as the game quickly moved to the 3rd scoreless.
The narrative changed in the 3rd as FSW put together four straight singles to start their half of the inning, pushing runs home on RBI knocks from Luca Danos and Nate Earley to take a 2-0 lead.
The Bucs added to their lead in the 4th as Salvador Alvarez and Justin Thomas singled with one out before Victor Figueroa launched his 16th home run of the season out to dead center for a three run shot to stretch it to a 5-0 FSW advantage midway through. With the three RBIs on the blast, Figueroa breaks the FSW single season record with 67 RBIs this season.
Central Florida got on the board for the first time in the bottom of the inning on a two out walk followed by a double to cut the Bucs lead to 5-1.
FSW had a golden opportunity to blow things open in the 5th as they loaded the bases for the middle of their order, but a fly out ended the threat and the inning with the score still 5-1 in favor of the Bucs.
The Patriots got a run without hitting the ball out of the infield in the 5th, using a bunt single, an FSW error, and a passed ball to creep back to within three at 5-2 at the end of five complete.
The Bucs ran into trouble in the 6th as a one out RBI double for the Patriots made it a two run game before a bases loaded walk drew them to within one. With two outs and the bases still loaded, a triple down the left field line cleared the bases and gave Central Florida their first lead of the game at 7-5.
FSW was gift wrapped a comeback in their final scheduled at bats in the 7th as the Patriots walked the bases full and then walked a run in to make it a one run game at 7-6. Another free pass, this one via a hit batter forced home their second run of the inning to tie the game at 7 and a sacrifice fly from Earley gave the Bucs the lead back at 8-7 at stretch time.
The Bucs had a chance to close out the Patriots in the 7th but couldn't, hitting the Pats leadoff hitter and later giving up a sac fly to score the run and tie the game at 8 and send it to extra innings.
Eric Blair drew a leadoff walk to begin the FSW 8th and moved to third with nobody out on a single from Michael McAloose before scoring on an RBI groundout from Alvarez to put the Bucs back in front 9-8.
The Bucs looked like they had two quick outs to start the bottom of the 8th, but an errant throw down the right field line gave the Patriots a runner at third with one out and a single through the hole on the left side drove the run home and leveled the score once more at 9.
The Bucs offense kept putting the pressure on the Patriots, putting two on with two out before Blair beat the Central Florida shift with a double down the left field line to score both runs and put FSW back in front 11-9.
FSW made it hard on themselves once again with free passes in the bottom of the 9th, hitting the first two Patriots that came to the plate to quickly put the tying run on base and bring the game winning run to the plate. A pop out and a strikeout put two outs on the board before a walk loaded the bases with the game on the line. After a deep breath, Bucs reliever Josiah Velazquez fired a first pitch strike before inducing a ground ball to second to close things out and give the Bucs an 11-9 win to clinch the series victory.
The Bucs outhit the Patriots 12-7 in the game and took advantage of 16 free passes, 14 walks and two hit batters in the win. Figueroa led the way, going 2-3 with a homer and four RBIs while Danos, Earley, and Blair each drove in two runs apiece. Nate Ward earned the win out of the FSW bullpen to improve to 4-0 on the year while Velazquez notched his second save with a scoreless 9th.
The Bucs had a chance to jump on the Patriots right away in game two as they loaded the bases with one out in the top half of the 1st, but they couldn't come through with a big hit and stranded the runners at inning's end to keep it scoreless after one.
Central Florida got the scoring going as they took advantage of back to back FSW walks to start the 2nd and cashed them both in later in the frame to take a 2-0 lead after two.
The Bucs cracked the scoreboard for the first time in the 4th as McAloose walked and scored on a double from Alvarez to cut the Patriot lead in half to 2-1.
Neither team could do anything with 5th inning baserunners as it remained a 2-1 game at the end of five.
The Bucs loaded the bases again in the 6th with two outs and Evan Kircher worked a walk to bring the tying run home to make it 2-2. A seemingly routine ground ball to second looked like it was going to end the inning, but the Patriots mishandled it allowing all three Buccaneer runners to score to open up a 5-2 lead for FSW in the blink of an eye.
Just when it looked like all the momentum was on the side of the Bucs, a four pitch walk by FSW to start the Central Florida 6th got the Patriots going and after a single and a hit batter, Central Florida had the bases loaded with nobody out in the inning. A strikeout put the first out of the inning on the board, but three straight free passes, two walks and a hit batter gifted the Patriots three runs to tie the game at 5. After the Bucs second call to the bullpen of the inning, a sac fly brought another run home, giving Central Florida the lead back at 6-5.
Down to their final out in the 7th the Bucs kept fighting as Thomas drilled an RBI single the other way to tie the game at 6.
Bucs reliever Alex Walsh stranded the game winning run at second to end the 7th with his second strikeout of the inning to send the game to extras for the second time on the afternoon.
The Bucs put the go ahead run on base in the 8th but he was erased on a double play ball to end the frame and keep the game tied at 6.
Unfortunately for the Bucs, they couldn't do the same in the bottom half of the inning as back to back singles set the table for the Patriots and a third single through the left side sealed it as Central Florida walked it off for a 7-6 win.
Thomas and Alvarez each had a pair of hits and an RBI for the Bucs. Abel Albarran went five innings and allowed three hits and three runs without factoring in the decision while Walsh suffered the tough luck loss, going two innings and allowing one run to fall to 1-4 on the year.
FSW wins the series and moves to 31-15 overall and 20-7 in Citrus Conference play with the Saturday split while Central Florida goes to 26-19 overall and 14-13 in league play.
The Bucs are back in action at home on Tuesday when they take on TNXL Academy in a 3 PM first pitch from Buccaneers Park in Fort Myers before beginning a huge three game conference series on the road at Miami Dade Thursday at 3 PM.