SAINT LEO, Fla. – It was a long Sunday afternoon for the Saint Leo baseball team as they found themselves on the wrong end of 11-6 and 17-10 final scores as they were swept by visiting Rollins College in Sunshine State Conference action from Thomas B. Southard Stadium.
Game one saw the Lions battle early as they answered two Rollins (8-5, 2-0 SSC) runs with a two-spot in the second inning; the first run coming off the bat of Ryan Powers, who stroked a 2-2 pitch over the left-field wall for his second homer of the year.
A scoreless third moved the game into the fourth where Rollins got back on top with a single run.
The Tars opened the margin when they posted three-run frames in both the fifth and seventh innings. The runs came courtesy of two big hits; a triple by centerfielder Taylor Ferguson to lead off the fifth and a two-run home run to dead centerfield by designated hitter Scott Chase in the middle of the seventh.
Despite a small four-run rally by Saint Leo in the bottom of the ninth, the Tars had established enough of a cushion and pulled out the five-run victory.
Game two was decided in one inning as the Tars turned a 4-4 ballgame into a runaway victory after posting a 10-spot on Saint Leo pitching in the fifth inning.
The Lions held their own up until that point, taking a 4-3 lead after plating three runs in the bottom of the third.
Despite being down by a dozen runs heading into the bottom of the final inning, the Lions did not quit and forced Rollins to fight for their final three outs. SLU hitters batted around the lineup and scored five runs, forcing Rollins to use two pitchers before the game went final.
In a day that saw over five and a half hours of action with both teams combining for 44 runs along with 61 hits, Lions second baseman Ryan Brnovich put together a 5-for-6 day with an RBI. Powers took home the team’s RBI-award for the day as he went 5-for-9 with six RBI. Despite the game-two loss, the Lions saw centerfielder Ware Hart go a perfect 4-for-4 with two RBI and four runs scored.
Saint Leo pitchers Marshall Stalvey (0-3) and Caleb Fuddy (0-1) were saddled with the losing decisions on the day.
Rightfielder Joey Manning was the Tars’ best performer as he would go 6-for-9 with four RBI, a double and two homeruns.
The Lions will put the home uniforms back on again Monday afternoon as they host Saint Anselm College in a rare Monday afternoon doubleheader. First pitch of the first game is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at Thomas B. Southard Stadium on the Saint Leo campus.
