Posted: Apr 06, 2024
FORT MYERS, Fla.- After dropping game one of their Citrus Conference doubleheader 5-4 Saturday afternoon against the Santa Fe Saints, Florida SouthWestern freshman dialed up the best performance of his rookie season with the Bucs, throwing a one hit shutout in a 10-0 five inning run rule shortened contest to win the series from the Saints 2-1 and remain in first place in the conference standings with nine games left to go.
Things got off to an inauspicious start for the Bucs in game one of the doubleheader as Santa Fe got two in the 1st and three more in the 2nd to jump out to an early 5-0 lead.
The Bucs began their charge back in the 3rd as Luca Danos doubled down the left field line to drive home a run and an obstruction call on the Saints later in the inning netted FSW a second run to cut the Santa Fe lead to 5-2 at the end of three.
FSW starter Jordan Huskey shook off the slow start with his second straight 1-2-3 inning in the 4th and his offense kept chipping away as Justin Thomas launched a two run home run the other way to get the Bucs back to within one at 5-4 as the teams went to the 5th.
Nate Ward came in out of the FSW bullpen and helped work the Bucs out of a jam in the 6th to keep it a one run game, but the FSW offense went down quietly in the bottom of the inning to keep it a 5-4 contest after six.
Ward worked a 1-2-3 top of the 7th to give the Bucs a chance in their final at bats and Victor Figueroa doubled with one out to give FSW two cracks at tying it, but a strikeout and a groundout brought the game to a close with Santa Fe hanging on for a 5-4 win to even the series at a game apiece.
FSW outhit Santa Fe 9-5 in the contest, but Bucs pitching issued six free passes to help the Saints to their five runs in the win. Figueroa finished a perfect 4-4 for the Bucs in the loss while Thomas was 2-4 with a homer and two RBIs. Huskey suffered the loss on the mound, going 5 2/3 innings and allowing five hits and five runs to fall to 5-3 on the year. Ward retired all four hitters he faced to close out the game.
With the series on the line, game two was a different story as this time it was the Bucs jumping out to a 5-0 lead after two, getting an RBI single from Nate Earley in the 1st and four more in the 2nd highlighted by RBI singles from Danos and Salvador Alvarez to spot FSW a five run advantage.
Bucs starter Abel Albarran cruised through his third straight scoreless inning in the 3rd, racking up a pair of strikeouts in the process and worked his way out of a jam in the 4th to keep his shutout intact and the Bucs in front 5-0.
FSW added to their lead in the bottom of the 4th as Thomas hit a scalding line drive out to dead center for his second home run of the day to make it 7-0 and later in the inning Earley pulled an RBI single through the right side to make it an 8-0 game after four.
Albarran continued his mastery of the Saints bats in the 5th, working another 1-2-3 frame with two strikeouts and the Bucs put the game in the books in the bottom half of the inning as they loaded the bases for Figueroa who dropped a two strike single into center to bring home a pair for a defacto walk off as the Bucs took it 10-0 in five.
Albarran was the story as the freshman righthander fired a complete game shutout, allowing just one hit in the process while striking out eight to improve to 4-0 on the year on the mound for FSW. Eight of nine Bucs starters had hits in the win led by Thomas at the top of the order with a 2-2 effort witha homer and three RBIs and Figueroa and Earley who each finished with a pair of hits and two RBIs each.
The split earns FSW the series win as they move to 28-14 overall and 18-6 in Citrus Conference play where they remain in first place with three series left to go. Santa Fe goes to 23-17 overall and 13-11 in league play with the split.
The Bucs are back in action on Tuesday at home when they host South Florida State in a non-conference game beginning at 3 PM at Buccaneers Park in Fort Myers before starting a key three game set with defending National Champs Central Florida Thursday in the City of Palms.