WINTER PARK, Fla. – Matt Sullivan went deep, but UWF baseball could not withstand the Rollins Tars at Harper-Shepherd Field Saturday morning. The Argos fell for the second time in the three-game set 4-1.
"Disappointing day, especially offensively," said UWF head coach Mike Jeffcoat. "You've got to give their pitchers a lot of credit. Fourteen punchouts, it's hard to win games like that.
Tony Rossi (0-2) got the start for the Argos. He went six innings, allowing two runs in the second and two more in the sixth. The freshman surrendered seven hits while striking out four and walking one. The Tars got to him for two runs in the second on an sacrifice fly by Eddie Ayala and a squeeze bunt by Joe Cosgrove to get out to a 2-0 lead.
"I thought Rossi did a fine job," said Jeffcoat. "Again, as a freshman, I thought he gave us a good chance to win."
Down 2-0 entering the fifth, UWF got on the board courtesy of a solo home run by Matt Sullivan. The home run was his third in his last six games dating back to last season.
In the end, the run was the only that the Rollins staff allowed. Tars starter Drew Daczowski (1-1) earned the win by going six innings of one-run, four-hit ball. He struck out 10 and walked two en route to the victory. The Tars found insurance in the seventh on a two-run home run by Cameron Meehan to ultimately put the game out of reach. The win was the third straight for Rollins.
Jimmy Robbins earned his first save of the season for the home team. He fired the final three innings, striking out four without allowing a hit or a walk. Matt Jones reached via hit-by-pitch in the ninth but was stranded on second to end the game. The Argos stranded five. The Tars left eight.
Isaac Phillips, Dylan Menhennett, Jones and Sullivan picked up the four Argo hits. UWF struck out a total of 14 times. Dylan Mills-Derouen, Hunter Lucas and Jared Hatch appeared out of the bullpen for UWF, combining for four walks but no hits and no runs.
The finale of the three-game series between the Argos and Tars is set for Sunday at 12:00 p.m. ET/11:00 p.m. CT.
"We've got to figure out a way to get that confidence back and keep plugging," said Jeffcoat. "It's a long season ahead. Hasn't turned out the way we wanted these first two weekends, but I still feel like this team's got what it takes to win some ballgames. We've just got to learn how to play together and execute in the situations we need to execute in."
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