MELBOURNE, Fla. – Flagler College trailed 3-1 going into the top of the ninth inning, but scored two runs to tie the game only to have Florida Tech win with a game-ending RBI double in a 4-3 Panther victory Tuesday night at Seminick-Hall Field.
Florida Tech snapped a five-game losing streak and improved to 15-12 overall. Flagler dropped to 16-17.
Steven DiPuglia led off the top of the ninth for Flagler by drawing a walk. Florida Tech turned to its third pitcher, Ryan Allain (1-2), to close the game. Instead, he walked
Aaron Anderson and
Sean Lawlor to load the bases.
Elliott Schubert hit a ground ball to Panther first baseman Jacob Buser, who fired to shortstop Pedro Rivera to force out Lawlor at second base. DiPuglia scored on the play and Anderson scored on an errant throw by Rivera to tie the game. Allain picked of Schubert at first base and then struck out the last batter to end the inning.
Flagler's
Aaron Simple (0-1), working in his second inning of relief, retired the first two batters in the ninth. Vincenzo Catanza kept the Panthers alive by reaching on an infield single to second base. A wild pitch moved him to second and he scored on Rodnie Bernard's double down the left field line.
Allain allowed an unearned run, walked two and struck out one to get the win for Florida Tech.
Catanza finished with two singles and he scored two runs.
Simple tossed 1 2/3 innings and allowed one run on two hits. He struck out two batters.
Jett Walsh started while
Colt Mink and
Dante Pagano worked in relief.
Schubert,
Nikolas Dague,
Kenneth Gordon, and
Zach Heming each hit a single for the Saints.
Flagler hosts No. 19 (
Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Division II Top 30) Columbus State University for a three-game weekend series starting Friday at 6 p.m. at Drysdale Field.
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