BOX SCORE: G1 | G2
PENSACOLA, Fla. – The University of West Florida had a tough go in its Gulf South Conference doubleheader against first-place Delta State, falling in each end of Friday's doubleheader by scores of 7-5 and 8-0.
With the pair of setbacks, UWF is 23-17 overall and 15-11 in league action.
Delta State built its GSC lead to a commanding four games with a 21-5 conference record. Delta State, ranked No. 5 in the nation by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, owns a 31-8 record on the year.
Game 1: Delta State 7, West Florida 5
West Florida had a 5-3 advantage heading into the seventh inning, but a four-run, five-hit frame for Delta State gave the Statesmen a 7-5 win in the series opener.
Faced with an early 1-0 deficit, the Argos were quick to respond with
Chase Kiefer leading off the bottom of the first with a double and later coming around to score on a Delta State throwing error. The Argos grabbed its first lead of the game with a 2-RBI single from
Robert Lopez and a batter later added onto that lead with a
Tanner Halstead single scoring
Justin Ambrosino.
Delta State made the game a little tighter in the sixth, scoring a pair of runs in a three-hit inning. Kiefer responded in the home half with a RBI single scoring
Michael Savas.
Jarrod Petree entered the seventh having only allowed one run, but after a single and double gave DSU two runners in scoring position with no outs, UWF made the move to the bullpen with
Brian Browning entering the game.
Browning had entered his outing with a streak of 19 consecutive scoreless innings, but after the southpaw allowed two inherited runners to score to tie the game at 5-5, DSU first baseman Zack Shannon hit his GSC-leading 11
th home run of the season to provide the Statesmen with a 7-5 lead.
"We had to bring Browning in in a bad situation there with runners at second and third with no outs," stated head coach
Mike Jeffcoat. "He's gotten us out of that plenty of times this year, and it's tough – they have a very good hitting team."
The Argos were held to just one hit in the final two frames. Browning settled into his outing nicely after the game-determining home run, allowing just three hits in the remainder of his outing.
Kiefer led the offense with a 3-for-5 performance, including a pair of doubles, two runs scored and a RBI.
Robert Lopez went 2-for-4 in the No. 5 spot in the lineup and led the team with two RBI.
Game 2: Delta State 8, West Florida 0
UWF was plagued by seven unearned Delta State runs as the Statesmen posted all eight of its runs in the first two innings to complete the doubleheader sweep.
"Tough to get any momentum going after falling down 8-0, certainly today was very disappointing," said Jeffcoat.
Reigning South Region Pitcher of the Year Tre Hobbs pitched a complete game for Delta State and allowed just four UWF hits while recording seven strikeouts with no walks.
Three of UWF's four hits went for extra bases but UWF was unable to record multiple hits in any frame throughout the contest.
Jared Middleton was unable to record an out in his return to the rotation and was dealt his first loss of the season after allowing one earned run on three hits. Middleton entered today's outing with no earned runs allowed in 14.1 innings pitched of conference play.
Trace Penton returned to the bullpen and shined for UWF in the game's later stages and after posting 5.1 scoreless innings with only three hits allowed, three strikeouts, and no walks. As a reliever, Penton has posted 18.1 consecutive scoreless innings in GSC action.
West Florida looks to avoid the series sweep tomorrow with first pitch of the finale scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.
To stay updated on all things UWF baseball, follow the team on Twitter @UWF_Baseball.
