April 19, 2025
Bucs Win Series With Saturday Split Against Sharks
For the second straight weekend, the #10 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers had a chance to finish off a sweep, but were forced to settle for a series win on Saturday, taking game one over Miami Dade 7-3 behind seven unanswered runs before dropping the series finale 3-1 to close the weekend winning two out of three against the Sharks and in turn, clinching home field advantage for the regional round of the FCSAA State Tournament May 2-4.
MIAMI, Fla.- For the second straight weekend, the #10 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers had a chance to finish off a sweep, but were forced to settle for a series win on Saturday, taking game one over Miami Dade 7-3 behind seven unanswered runs before dropping the series finale 3-1 to close the weekend winning two out of three against the Sharks and in turn, clinching home field advantage for the regional round of the FCSAA State Tournament May 2-4.
The Bucs and Sharks matched each other the first two innings of game one, getting a walk and stranding a runner in the 1st before being retired in order in the 2nd to send the game to the 3rd scoreless.
Miami Dade cracked the scoreboard first, using a stolen base and a wild pitch to push a run across and take a 1-0 lead after three.
After the Bucs third straight 1-2-3 inning in the top of the 4th, Miami Dade added to their lead, getting a two out two run double in the bottom of the inning to extend their lead to 3-0.
The Bucs finally broke through in the 5th as Carlos Sanchez walked to start the inning and Nathan Fink launched a two run home run to draw FSW back to within one at 3-2 with one swing of the bat. Luke Orfi was hit by a pitch and stole second before Alex Kuenzle picked up a pinch hit RBI single the other way to tie things up at 3.
The Bucs carried their momentum into the 6th as Fink lined an RBI single the other way to give FSW their first lead of the game and moments later Orfi followed suit to make it 5-3 Bucs after 5 1/2.
Josiah Velazquez came in out of the FSW bullpen and fired a quick 1-2-3 shutdown inning in the bottom of the 6th and the Bucs took advantage of a pair of Miami Dade errors in the top of the 7th to add two insurance runs to up their lead to 7-3.
The insurance wasn't needed though as Velazquez mowed through the Shark order in the bottom of the 7th to close things out and give the Bucs a 7-3 win to clinch the series victory.
Fink led the way for the Bucs, going 2-3 with a homer and three RBIs while Nik Pereira was 2-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Abel Albarran earned the win on the mound, eating up five innings and allowing six hits and three runs while striking out six to improve to 5-1 on the year. Velazquez closed things out with a perfect two innings of work out of the bullpen to nail down his fifth save of the year.
The Bucs shot themselves in the foot early in game two, walking the first two Miami Dade batters of the game before a double to right brought in both runs and gave the Sharks a quick 2-0 lead.
Cole Greer entered the game out of the FSW bullpen to finish the 1st and then struck out the side in the 2nd and worked another 1-2-3 frame in the 3rd to keep it a 2-0 game.
The Bucs got on the scoreboard for the first time in the 4th as Michael McAloose doubled with one out before Ty Hamilton drove him in with a single back up the middle to cut the Miami Dade lead in half to 2-1.
Miami Dade got the run right back in the bottom of the 4th, using a leadoff single and a double behind it to push their lead back to two at 3-1.
The Bucs put runners on in both the 5th and 6th but couldn't cash them in and Nicholas Lorenz put up zeroes for FSW in both frames on the mound to keep it a 3-1 game into the 7th.
Miami Dade threatened to extend their lead in the bottom of the 7th but Nathan Fink gunned down a runner at home to end the inning and keep the Bucs within striking distance at 3-1.
The Bucs continued to put pressure on the Sharks in the 8th, putting runners on the corners with two outs, but they couldn't come through with the big hit and it remained a 3-1 game to the 9th.
FSW got a one out walk in the 9th to bring the tying run to the plate for the middle of their order, but it wasn't meant to be in this one as the Sharks closed them out to hang on for a 3-1 win to salvage the series finale.
Hamilton and Jake Mueller combined for five of the Bucs seven hits in the defeat. Parker Burgess took the loss on the mound, failing to get out of the first inning while allowing a hit and three walks to fall to 2-1 on the year. Greer gave FSW 3 1/3 solid innings out of the bullpen, striking out five and allowing just two hits and one run before Lorenz finished the game with four scoreless innings of work.
The Bucs win their fourth straight conference series to move to 36-12 overall and 21-9 in Citrus Conference play. The game one win coupled with a State College of Florida loss to Eastern Florida means that FSW clinches a home series for the upcoming FCSAA Championship May 2-4 in Fort Myers. Miami Dade moves to 26-21 overall on the year while staying at .500 at 15-15 in conference play where they are tied with Seminole State for the sixth and final playoff spot with one series left to go.
FSW will play their final non-conference game of the year on Tuesday when they travel to Bradenton to take on State College of Florida in a 6 PM first pitch. The Bucs will then begin a three game series to close out the regular season at Polk State on Thursday under the lights before returning home for Sophomore Day at Buccaneers Park Saturday at noon.