FORT MYERS, Fla. - The No. 4 Florida SouthWestern softball team, honored its nine super sophomores pre-game, and went on to sweep a Suncoast Conference doubleheader with State College of Florida on Tuesday night. The Bucs defeated SCF 4-1 in game one, before using some late-inning magic to pick up the 4-3 win over the Manatees in game two.
The FSW record now moves to 50-5 overall and 16-2 in conference, while SCF falls to 29-21 (13-7 Suncoast Conference) FSW's 50 wins are the second most wins in the country (Chipola; 51). With the game one win over SCF, FSW also secured the program's second consecutive Suncoast Conference title and punched their second straight ticket to the NJCAA District/FCSAA State Softball Tournament. The tournament will take place at Historic Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Fla. from April 28-30.
The Bucs will enter the postseason as the No. 1 seed from the Suncoast Conference and will open play in the 16-team, double-elimination event at 11 a.m., Friday, April 28 against the No. 4 seed from the Panhandle Conference Tallahassee CC. Win or lose, the Buccaneers will play a second game on April 28 at 4 p.m. against either the Southern Conference Runners-up or the No. 3 seed from the Mid-Florida Conference.
In the game one win, Courtney Gettins got the start in the circle and pitched 7.0 innings, surrendering just three hits and one earned run, en route to picking up the win. Gettins also struck out six in games one. Christian Quinn went 1-for-2 with a run scored and an RBI, Molly Roark finished 1-for-2 with an RBI and Taylor Collins went 1-for-3 with a run scored. Mikenzie Vaughn went 2-for-3 at the dish.
In game two, the Bucs got a huge at-bat from Kayla Rangiawha in the bottom of the seventh inning to pick up the 4-3 win over SCF. The sophomore, who was the leadoff batter for the FSW half of the inning, stepped into the batter's box and blasted a solo homer over the fence in right centerfield to give the Bucs the dramatic 4-3 win.
The Purple and Aqua are back in action on Thursday, April 6 when they travel to Avon Park, Fla. to face South Florida State College. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.
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FLORIDA SOUTHWESTERN
The Florida SouthWestern State College athletic program is a member of the Florida College System Athletic Association (FCSAA) and the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The Buccaneers are one of 25 schools in the NJCAA Region 8 and are one of six schools in the Suncoast Conference. Florida SouthWestern State College currently supports four intercollegiate athletic programs (Baseball, Softball, Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball), with Volleyball coming in the fall of 2017.
Baseball and Softball began their regular season competition in 2016 at the City of Palms Park in Fort Myers. Located on the Thomas Edison (Lee) Campus in Fort Myers will be the brand new Suncoast Credit Union Arena (completed in fall 2016), where FSW's men's and women's basketball and volleyball teams will compete.
THE NJCAA
The movement to form a unique sports association dedicated to America's two-year colleges arose in 1937 when several track and field coaches gathered in Fresno, California. A year later, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rejected a petition from 13 two-year colleges in California to grant their teams and athletes permission to compete at the NCAA Track & Field Championships.
In the spring of 1938, following the NCAA's rejection, those same 13 two-year colleges gathered again in Fresno to organize and form an association that would promote and supervise a national athletics program exclusively for junior and community colleges…and the rest is history.
On May 14, 1938, the first constitution of the National Junior College Athletic Association was accepted by its charter members and the organization held its first national championship event a year later in May 1939.
The NJCAA has played a vital role in collegiate athletics for the past eight decades and continues to be the leader in championing academic and athletic opportunities for student-athletes. This section of the association's website is dedicated to celebrating the NJCAA's rich history and tradition as the national governing body of two-year college athletics.
For more information on the NJCAA log on to www.NJCAA.org.
THE FCSAA
The Florida College System Activities Association, Incorporated (FCSAA) is a statewide non‑profit corporation regulating, coordinating, and promoting intercollegiate activities in: Athletics, Brain Bowl, Forensics, Music, Student Government, Student Publications, and Theatre.
Membership in the Florida College System Activities Association is open to any of the 28 colleges in the Florida College System. Each member institution is represented in the policy‑making deliberations of the Association through that institution's President or other designated representative. The institutional representatives constitute the FCSAA Presidents Assembly, the ultimate authority in FCSAA.
For more information on the FCSAA log on to www.TheFCSAA.com.
NJCAA REGION 8, THE SUNCOAST CONFERENCE & THE SOUTHERN CONFERENCE
Member colleges of the NJCAA are allotted to a specific NJCAA Region upon membership to the association. Unlike other collegiate organizations that defer to conference affiliation, the NJCAA guarantees each member college's membership within the regional structure of the association. In most cases, region assignment is based upon geographic location of the college.
The region structure of the NJCAA is the primary method used by all sponsored sports of the association in determining qualification for national championship tournaments. In certain sports, two or more regions are partnered to form a competition 'district', which is then used for national championship qualification. The organization of districts varies per sport and is formulated every two years under the authority of the association's board of directors.
FSW is in Region 8 and is joined by ASA College Miami (Region 8 only; non-FCSAA member), Broward College, Chipola College, College of Central Florida, Daytona State College, Eastern Florida State College, Florida State College at Jacksonville, Gulf Coast State College, Hillsborough Community College, Indian River State College, Lake-Sumter State College, Miami Dade College, Northwest Florida State College, Palm Beach State College, Pasco-Hernando State College, Pensacola State College, Polk State College, Santa Fe College, Seminole State College of Florida, South Florida State College, St. Johns River State College, St. Petersburg College, State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota and Tallahassee Community College.
The Bucs are also in the Suncoast Conference with Hillsborough Community College, Polk State College, South Florida State College, St. Petersburg College and State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota.
The women's basketball program is Southern Conference with Broward College, Eastern Florida State College, Indian River State College, Miami Dade College and Palm Beach State College.
For more information on Region 8 log on to www.TheFCSAASports.com.