No. 11 Softball Takes Two On Day One Of The FCSAA State Tourney

Softball Team celebration at home plate
Softball Team celebration at home plate

FCSAA STATE TOURNAMENT | TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
FCSAA STATE TOURNAMENT BRACKET
WHEN:
April 29 – May 1, 2016
WHERE:
Historic Dodgertown (Vero Beach, Fla.)
TICKETS (DAY PASSES): $8.00 for adults, $5.00 for students and children
TICKETS (TOURNAMENT PASS): $15.00 for adults, $10.00 for students and children
VIDEO:
Select games are available on the FCSAA Sports YouTube Channel

VERO BEACH, Fla. – The No. 11 Florida SouthWestern State College softball team picked up a pair of wins on day one of the FCSAA State Tournament at Historic Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Fla. on Friday (April 29).

With the wins, FSW's record moves to 49-12 overall. The wins also make the Bucs winners of 27 of their last 28 games.

In game one, the Purple and Aqua defeated Florida State College at Jacksonville 12-5. Courtney Gettins picked up the win, pitching a complete game, allowing seven hits, five runs (four earned) and striking out eight. Criza Bulanadi and Hollianne Dohrn led the FSW offense. Bulanadi went 3-for-4 with three runs scored, two RBIs and three stolen bases, while Dohrn finished 3-for-4with a triple and three RBIs. Kayla Rangiawha went 1-for-3 with a homer and four RBIs and Molly Roark finished 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs.

In game two, the Bucs defeated Gulf Coast State, 5-4, in 10 innings. Gettins picked up her second win of the day, pitching a complete game and racking up six punchouts. Marta Fuentes led the Bucs going 4-for-5 from the dish with three runs scored and a stolen base. Tied a 4-4 in the bottom of the 10th inning, Dohrn singled to right field and immediately advanced to second base on a passed ball. Graysen Gladden then advanced Dohrn to third base with a sacrifice fly. After a strikeout gave FSW their second out of the inning, Savannah Retallick stepped into the batter's box and laid down a perfect bunt to score Dohrn and give the Bucs the hard-fought victory.

The Bucs will now face Chipola at noon on Saturday (April 30). FSW will either play the winner of Seminole State (40-21) vs. Northwest Florida State (43-6) at 7 p.m. (April 30), with the winner earning a spot to the NJCAA Division I Softball Tournament in St. George, Utah (May 18-21, 2016 at Canyons Complex), or the winner of FSCJ/St. Petersburg vs. Miami Dade/Indian River State at 5 p.m. (April 30).

All of the games on Saturday and Sunday can be viewed live on YouTube via the FCSAA YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh4ZLsoE41xmeAZbJbDZnug/featured).

For more information on Buccaneer Athletics follow @FSWBucs on Twitter or log on to FSWBucs.com.

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 (set to be completed by 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
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.

For more information on Region 8 log on to www.TheFCSAASports.com.