February 5, 2022
Bucs Take Two Saturday, Finish Paradise Cove Tournament Unbeaten
On Friday, the #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers used a constant offensive assault to power their way to a pair of run rule victories at the Paradise Cove Tournament. On Saturday, the Bucs used a different style, pitching and defense, to claim a pair of wins and finish the tournament undefeated as Belle Sardja and Kylee Graham combined for a three hit shutout in a 5-0 win against St. Thomas and Baylee Haggard threw a gem in their second game against D2 #3 Louisburg to give the Bucs a 5-3 victory.
FORT MYERS, Fla.- On Friday, the #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers used a constant offensive assault to power their way to a pair of run rule victories at the Paradise Cove Tournament. On Saturday, the Bucs used a different style, pitching and defense, to claim a pair of wins and finish the tournament undefeated as Belle Sardja and Kylee Graham combined for a three hit shutout in a 5-0 win against St. Thomas and Baylee Haggard threw a gem in their second game against D2 #3 Louisburg to give the Bucs a 5-3 victory.
Drawing her first start of her collegiate career in the Bucs first game of the day against St. Thomas, Belle Sardja was lights out early on for FSW, retiring each of the first nine hitters she faced to put up three goose eggs on the board for the Bobcats through three.
Unfortunately for the Bucs, their bats didn't seem to like the early start either as they went without a run through three to quickly send the game to the 4th in a scoreless tie.
FSW finally broke through in the 4th as the birthday girl, Caroline Figueroa, lifted a sacrifice fly to center to plate Laura Vigna from third to give the Bucs a 1-0 lead.
Chelsea Brown got the Bucs started in the 5th with a double to the gap and later scored on an error on the infield by the Bobcats to make it 2-0. Later in the frame, another St. Thomas miscue allowed the Bucs second run of the inning to score to make it a 3-0 game.
St. Thomas got their first baserunner of the game with two outs in the 5th, but nothing materialized to keep it a 3-0 Bucs lead at the end of five.
The Bucs combined no-hit bid in the circle was ended in the 6th with a pair of Bobcat knocks, but their defense squelched any further threat from there to send the game to the 7th with FSW continuing to lead it 3-0.
The Bucs got some insurance in the top of the 7th as Taylor Jensen lined a ball down the left field line for a two out, two run single to stretch the lead to 5-0, but FSW wouldn't need the extra cushion as Graham closed the 'Cats out, finishing off the 5-0 shutout win for the Bucs.
Sardja earned her first career win with four perfect innings in the circle while Graham earned her first save with three scoreless to close things out. Vigna, Jensen, and Brown combined for six of the Bucs seven hits in the win.
The Bucs second matchup of the day was a battle of one of the top NJCAA Division I programs in FSW and one of the top NJCAA Division II programs in the Hurricanes of Louisburg.
FSW wasted no time in jumping in front as Shenita Tucker singled to start the game and Vigna walked behind her to bring up Feline Poot who launched a three run shot out to right to put the Bucs on top 3-0 right away. Not only did the big fly give the Bucs the lead, but the shot also gave the FSW all-time home record to Poot and Poot alone, as she broke a tie with her 25th career blast.
Louisburg answered right away, stringing together three hits after a leadoff hit by pitch in the 2nd to score three times to quickly knot the score back up at 3.
The Bucs loaded the bases with one out in the 3rd and got an RBI single off the bat of Brown to push back in front 4-3. The bases remained loaded and FSW had a chance to blow it open for more, but a sharply hit groundball was handled by the Hurricane defense for a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat and keep it a 4-3 game to the 4th.
After a scoreless 4th the Bucs were at it again in the 5th as Poot lifted off on her second long ball of the game, this time to center, a solo shot to cushion the lead to 5-3.
With a two run lead in her pocket, FSW pitcher Baylee Haggard locked it in from there, retiring six of the final seven hitters she faced to sew up the win for the Bucs as they closed out the Hurricanes 5-3 to finish the tournament a perfect 4-0.
The Bucs new home run queen Poot finished 2-3 with a pair of bombs and four RBIs to lead the FSW offense while Haggard went the distance in the circle, allowing just five hits and one earned run to improve to 4-0 on the year.
The Bucs improve to 10-1 on the year with the victories and wrap up the Paradise Cove Tournament a perfect 4-0.
FSW will have a few days to rest up after six games in 72 hours, not taking the field again until Thursday when they travel to Avon Park to take on South Florida State in a non-conference doubleheader.