FORT MYERS, Fla.- On Opening Day of the 2025 season, the #4 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers struggled to find the strike zone, walking 13, and coming up with the big hit, going just 2-14 with runners in scoring position in a 4-3 loss to D2 #3 St. Johns River, but Sunday they flipped the script, striking out 13 Vikings and walking just three while coming up with four key hits with ducks on the pond for a dominating 7-1 win to split the opening weekend series. 

 

St. Johns River struck first for the second straight game in the 3^rd , using a pair of FSW errors to push across an unearned run to take an early 1-0 lead. 

 

The Bucs responded right away as Ty Hamilton and Luke Orfi reached with one out and executed a double steal to put themselves in scoring position ahead of Brock Knoerr who lined a two out single up the middle to score them both to put FSW in front 2-1. Three pitches later Carlos Sanchez teed off on a 1-1 breaking ball, sending it deep and out over the left field wall for a two run home run to pad the Bucs lead to 4-1. 

 

Andrew McLaughlin kept it right there, blowing through the Vikings order 1-2-3 in the 4^th and firing another scoreless frame in the 5^th to keep it a 4-1 game in favor of FSW midway through.  

 

The Bucs bullpen continued to dominate in the 6^th as Logan O'Leary struck out a pair in a 1-2-3 frame and the FSW bats added to the lead in the bottom half on a leadoff double from Jonah St. Antoine and a sacrifice fly from Jame Mueller to make it a 5-1 game.  

 

The Bucs put the game out of reach in the 8^th as Nathan Fink lifted a sac fly deep to right field to bring home a run and Mueller scorched a single back up the box to drive home another run to cushion the Bucs lead to 7-1. 

 

The Bucs found an unconventional way to close things out in the 9^th as they faced the minimum three hitters, but allowed a hit and a walk, using a line drive double play and an out on the bases to finish things off and seal up the 7-1 victory. 

 

The Bucs finished with nine hits as a team including four two out hits and four hits with runners in scoring position in the win. St. Antoine led the way, going 3-4 with a double and two runs scored while Knoerr was 2-3 with a pair of RBIs and Sanchez was 1-4 with his two run home run. 

 

Four FSW arms combined to allow just four hits and one unearned run while striking out 13 and walking just three. Parker Burgess fired two scoreless frames to open the game before giving the ball to McLaughlin who worked three innings and struck out six to earn the win. O'Leary and Robert Mitchell worked two scoreless innings each to finish things off, both striking out two in their first appearances with the Bucs. 

 

FSW levels their 2025 record at 1-1 with the win while St. Johns River falls to 1-2. 

 

The Bucs are back in action Wednesday when they travel to Lake Worth to take on Palm Beach State before returning home for a three game set with Chattahoochee Valley in Fort Myers.