May 8, 2021
Bucs Stunned Late in State Semifinals
In a rivalry as old as time; ok, as old as the Bucs program, the #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers were stunned by the Chipola Indians 6-3 in the FCSAA State Tournament semifinals Saturday.
LONGWOOD, Fla.- In a rivalry as old as time; ok, as old as the Bucs program, the #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers were stunned by the Chipola Indians 6-3 in the FCSAA State Tournament semifinals Saturday.
Chipola got on the board first in the top half of the 2nd inning when a pair of defensive miscues by FSW in the outfield allowed two Indian runs to score to give Chipola the early 2-0 lead.
With a pitcher's strike zone behind the plate, the Bucs offense struggled to get going and were unable to take advantage of their only scoring chance through the first four innings in the 3rd as they left two in scoring position and remained behind 2-0 as the game went to the 5th.
After two quick outs in the FSW 5th, the Bucs finally broke through as Janessa Plummer legged out her second hit of the game with an infield single and Eliska Stejskalova was plunked by a pitch to put two on for Rebeca Laudino. Normally renown for her speed, Laudino was needed for more than that in this situation and she flexed her muscles, drilling a three run bomb over the scoreboard in right field to send the Bucs dugout into a fury and put FSW in front for the first time in the game 3-2.
The Bucs had a chance to add some insurance in the 6th as Natavia Ellis singled back up the box to start the inning, but a pair of pop outs and a strikeout looking ended the threat and sent the game to the 7th with FSW clinging to a 3-2 lead.
A tough hop on a ground ball and an FSW error gave the Indians some life in the 7th with two on and just one out in the frame. Chipola wasted little time in taking advantage of the miscue, grounding a single up the middle to bring home a run and tie the game at 3. With momentum on their side, the Indians parlayed their one run inning into a four run frame on one swing as Gabby Bess hit a 1-1 pitch out to left for a three run home run to give Chipola a 6-3 advantage.
With the air sucked out of the FSW dugout, the Bucs went down quietly in their final at bats with a groundout and a pair of pop outs on the infield as Chipola finished off a 6-3 victory to end FSW's dreams of a State Championship.
Laudino and Plummer combined for four of FSW's five hits in the loss. Laudino was 2-4 with the 5th inning homer and three RBIs while Plummer was 2-3 with a run scored. Alyssa O'Donnell started and went 5 1/3 for the Bucs but did not factor in the decision. Alyson Marcum suffered her first career loss, allowing three hits and four runs in one inning of work to fall to 6-1 on the year.
The loss for FSW snaps a 24 game winning streak as they fall to 41-4 on the year. Chipola improves to 24-17 and will play for a State Championship Saturday against Indian River.
FSW will now pin their National Tournament hopes on a District H Championship. They will begin their quest for that on Sunday at 10 AM when they take on #15 Pensacola State in an elimination game at Soldier's Creek Park.