April 27, 2024
Pitching Dominates As FSW Sweeps Doubleheader From Polk to Close Regular Season
Three Florida SouthWestern pitchers held the Polk State Eagles to runs in just 2 of 16 offensive innings Saturday afternoon in Winter Haven as the Buccaneers swept their old rivals 5-1 and 5-3 to wrap up the regular season and sew up a 2nd place finish in the inaugural Citrus Conference standings.
WINTER HAVEN, Fla.- Three Florida SouthWestern pitchers held the Polk State Eagles to runs in just 2 of 16 offensive innings Saturday afternoon in Winter Haven as the Buccaneers swept their old rivals 5-1 and 5-3 to wrap up the regular season and sew up a 2nd place finish in the inaugural Citrus Conference standings.
The Bucs started game one of the doubleheader off with a bang as Justin Thomas drilled a double to left on the third pitch of the game and came around to score on a triple from Nate Earley to give FSW a quick 1-0 lead.
Polk leveled the score in the 3rd as they strung together three singles sandwiched around a successful sacrifice to make it a 1-1 game before Bucs starter Jordan Huskey induced a ground ball for a double play to work his way out of further trouble to keep the score tied at one after three complete innings of action.
The Eagles threatened to take their first lead of the game in the 4th as they loaded the bases with two outs, but once again Huskey came up with the pitch he needed to wiggle out of the jam and keep it a 1-1 game into the 5th.
The Bucs took the lead back in the top of the 5th as Thomas remained red hot with a solo home run to left to make it 2-1 and later in the inning Cooper Clapp lined a single back up the middle to plate two more and put FSW in front 4-1 after 4 1/2.
Huskey dialed up a big shutdown inning in the 5th after the crooked number and the Bucs added to their lead in their next trip to the plate as Victor Figueroa smacked an RBI single the other way to make it 5-1 FSW.
Huskey did the rest, striking out a pair in a 1-2-3 bottom of the 6th before taking the mound to finish what he started in the 7th as he retired the Eagles in order to lock down a 5-1 victory for the Bucs in game one of the twinbill.
Huskey went the distance for his fourth complete game of the year, scattering five hits and allowing just one run to pick up the win and improve to 6-4 on the year. The Bucs offense banged out 13 hits with Thomas leading the way, putting up a 3-4 game with a double and a home run while Figueroa and Earley both picked up two hits and drove in and scored a run each.
The Bucs had a chance to get out to another quick lead against the Eagles in game two as they loaded the bases in the top half of the 1st inning, but a strikeout ended the threat with three ducks left on the pond at inning's end.
Polk took advantage in the bottom of the inning, using an FSW error to extend the frame before scoring three unearned runs to go ahead for the first time on the afternoon 3-0.
The Bucs started working their way back into the game in the 3rd , using a pair of Polk walks to set the table ahead of a Jared Davis double to score a run followed by by a catcher's interference call with the bases loaded to allow another run to score to cut the Eagles lead to 3-2 after three.
Clapp drove a run home on a groundout to knot the score at 3 in the 5th before a passed ball with runners on the corners allowed another FSW run to score to put the Bucs ahead 4-3.
The Bucs got just what the doctor ordered in the bottom of the 5th as Abel Albarran came out and fired a quick 1-2-3 frame to keep FSW in front and he did the same in the 6th to send the game to the 7th with the Bucs on top of the Eagles 4-3.
The Bucs had a chance to add some insurance in the top of the 7th as they put two on with nobody out to start the inning, but they couldn't move the runners from there as the teams went to stretch time with FSW still clinging to a one run advantage.
Nate Ward came on out of the Bucs bullpen in the 7th and after allowing a leadoff single, retired the next three hitters in order including a pair of strikeouts to keep it a 4-3 game into the 8th.
Thomas continued his tear at the plate for the Bucs in the 8th as he led off with his fifth double of the series before coming around to score on a wild pitch later in the inning to give the Bucs some breathing room at 5-3.
Ward continued throwing darts in the bottom of the 8th, striking out the first two Polk hitters of the frame before getting a groundout to send the game to the 9th with FSW up by two.
The Bucs couldn't get any insurance in the 9th but they didn't need it as Ward was a man on a mission, throwing an immaculate inning for the Bucs with three straight strikeouts without throwing a ball to nail down a 5-3 win to complete the Saturday sweep.
Albarran and Ward combined to allow just four Polk hits in the win as Albarran went six innings, yielding just three hits and three runs, all unearned to pick up the win to improve to 5-0 on the year while Ward was electric out of the Buccaneers bullpen, retiring the final nine hitters he faced, seven via strikeout to notch his third save of the season. Luca Danos finished 3-4 with a pair of runs scored in the win for the Bucs while Figueroa was 1-2 and reached three other times on walks for FSW.
The Bucs close the regular season 35-19 overall after the sweep and finish 2nd in the 12 team Citrus Conference with a 23-10 mark in conference play. Polk falls to 33-23 overall and 18-15 in league play where they finish tied for 5th place with Central Florida.
FSW will now turn their attention to the postseason where they will begin play at home on Friday, May 3rd at 3 PM in the best two out of three Fort Myers Regional with their opponent to be announced Wednesday morning after the FCSAA State Tournament seeding meeting.