Posted: Jan 29, 2022
CLEARWATER, Fla.- The top ranked Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers flexed their muscles on the opening day of the 2022 season on Friday, dominating in route to a 3-0 day, defeating Northwest Florida State 5-2, East Georgia State 10-2, and D2 #9 Parkland 12-8 to start their title defense unblemished.
In their opener, the Bucs faced a stiff test in Northwest Florida who is expected to be one of FSW's top competitors for the 2022 FCSAA crown.
The Bucs jumped in front right off the bat on a two run double from Taylor Jensen to take the early lead in the 1st , but the Raiders quickly answered with two of their own in the 2nd to knot the score at 2 after two innings of play.
It remained a 2-2 game to the 4th when the Bucs retook the lead on a pair of walks and an RBI single up the middle from Feline Poot to make it 3-2 FSW.
Bucs starter Baylee Haggard worked out of a jam in the top of the 5th and her offense rewarded her with another tally in the bottom half to make it 4-2.
Caroline Figueroa singled up the middle to drive home a run in the bottom of the 6th to make it a 5-2 game, and that is the way it finished as Haggard closed out the Raiders in the 7th to finish off a 5-2 victory for the Bucs.
Haggard went the distance to earn her first win in the Purple and Aqua, scattering six hits and two runs while striking out a pair. Poot was the only FSW hitter with more than one hit in the contest, going 2-3 with two runs scored from the leadoff spot, while Jensen finished 1-3 with the game's only extra base hit and two RBIs.
In their second contest of the day, the Bucs squared off with the Bobcats of East Georgia State.
FSW put the game away right off the bat as they plated six in the 2nd, highlighted by an RBI double from Poot to take an early 6-0 lead.
They continued to add on in the 3rd on a two run single from Ava Worthy to stretch the lead to 8-0.
East Georgia finally cracked the scoreboard against FSW starter Kylee Graham in the 5th, getting a pair of two out runs to cut the lead to 8-2.
The Bucs got the runs back in the bottom half of the inning as Sterre den Duijn blasted the Bucs first home run of the year to lead off the inning and Worthy ripped an RBI single to right to pate another run, in turn bringing the game to an abrupt end via the run rule with FSW taking it 10-2 in five.
Graham earned her first win as a Buc with three scoreless innings, striking out five and allowing just three hits. Tucker went a perfect 3-3 with three runs scored, while Worthy was 2-2 with three RBIs off the FSW bench.
The Bucs final game of a busy first day was a top 10 matchup as the #1 ranked team in the NJCAA's Division I, FSW, took on the #9 team in NJCAA Division II, the Cobras of Parkland College.
The Bucs were snakebitten by the Cobras early on as Parkland jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead on a three run home run in the top half of the 1st before FSW even got their first cracks at bat.
FSW got two back in the bottom of the 1st on RBIs from Figueroa and McKenzie Whittenberg to cut the Parkland lead to 3-2 after one.
The Bucs took their first lead of the game in the 2nd as Laura Vigna doubled to leadoff the frame and later scored on an RBI single from Poot to even the score at 3 before another run scored on the throw to make it 4-3. Figueroa's big day continued with another two run single to stretch the Bucs lead to 6-3 after two.
Parkland kept fighting, getting back in the game with a pair of runs in the 4th to cut the Bucs lead to 6-5.
Again the Bucs answered. Figueroa ripped her second double of the day to make it 7-5 and scored herself on a groundout from Whittenberg to make it 8-5.
After Parkland got a run back in the 6th, the Bucs added some insurance in the bottom of the inning, getting three straight RBI hits, a double from Carys Platt, a single from Poot, and a triple from Tucker to open it back up to a 12-6 game after six innings of play.
The Cobras tallied a run in the top of the 7th, but it was too little, too late as the Bucs closed it out 12-7 to finish the day a perfect 3-0.
The Bucs banged out 14 hits in the win, getting multi-hit games from four different players. Poot was 3-4 with three RBIs and 3 runs scored while Tucker was 3-5 with a triple, two runs, and two RBIs.
The Bucs finish Opening Day 3-0 and will be back in action Saturday in Clearwater when they take on Marshalltown from Iowa and USC Union from South Carolina.