BOX SCORE: PDF | HTML
 
April 17, 2016
 
CLEVELAND, Miss. – Something had to give in the rubber game between the University of West Florida baseball team and the Delta State University Statesmen on Sunday afternoon, as the Argos came into the series winning nine-straight Gulf South Conference series while Delta State had won 18 straight in-conference home series, which dated all the way back to March 25, 2012.
 
Behind a dominating pitching performance by JT Granat, UWF won its 10^th straight GSC series by defeating the Statesmen, 6-1.
 
Granat nearly went the distance for the Argonauts, hurling 8.1 innings of one-run ball. The Pensacola native allowed one Delta State run in the first, and that would be all the offense DSU would collect in the contest.
 
The speed-bump start for Granat has been a common theme, as the junior righty owns a 5.73 ERA in the first inning this season. However, after the first inning, Granat owns a nifty 2.31 ERA in the second inning and beyond.
 
As usual, Granat was able to settle in, especially in the latest stages of the game. Granat, who was pulled with one out in the ninth inning, retired his final 12 opposing batters consecutively. Granat finished his outing with 8.1 innings pitched, allowing one earned run on seven hits while striking out six and walking one.
 
Granat now has a 1.13 ERA over his last five starts and a 2.55 ERA on the season that stands as the third best in the GSC.
 
In the ninth, Jarrod Petree was called upon to throw on back-to-back days and get the game's last two outs. After striking out his first batter, he got DSU's Colton Welch to hit a pop up towards the Argonauts dugout, where Justin Ambrosino made a highlight-reel catch over the railing to secure UWF's 6-1 victory.
 
After DSU's run in the bottom of the first, the UWF bats were quick to erase DSU's early lead as Robert Lopez and Nic Strasser recorded back-to-back RBI singles in the top of the second to give UWF a 2-1 lead.
 
UWF added some breathing room to its slim lead in the seventh, as the Argos strung together three runs on four hits in the frame. After Jean Figueroa was able to score on an error, Alex Greene and Ladeavon Matthews contributed an RBI single and an RBI double, respectively.
 
Strasser added a solo home run to left field in the ninth, giving the sophomore his team-high sixth home run of the season.
 
West Florida saw four players in the lineup with mutli-hit performances. Matthews, Strasser and Kyle Hamner each went 2-for-4, while Greene posted a 2-for-5 day at the plate. Figueroa led the team with two runs scored and Strasser and Lopez led the team with two RBIs each.
 
With the win, the Argos sit in first place in the Gulf South Conference, owning a one-game cushion over Delta State and West Alabama. West Georgia and Alabama Huntsville sit two games back and are tied for fourth in the conference.

West Florida baseball will wrap up its regular season home schedule next weekend against Shorter. The UWF-SU series begins on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
 
To stay updated on the UWF baseball team, follow the team on Twitter @UWF_Baseball. For information on all UWF Athletics, visit GoArgos.com.