FORT MYERS, FLA.- The #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers put on a show Tuesday night in front of their home crowd at City of Palms Park, pounding out 24 hits in just eight offensive innings in a pair of run rule wins over South Florida State in Suncoast Conference play.
It didn't take long for the Bucs to jump on the Panthers in game one as they loaded the bases with nobody out to start their half of the first and got a double down the line off the bat of Owen Bowers to clear the bases and put FSW on top 3-0.
They were back at it in the second as Alison Yawn and Rebeca Laudino slapped their way on with singles to start the inning and back to back RBI doubles from Lindsey Corbin and Madison Johnson put three more on the board to make it a 6-0 game. Later in the inning Paris Woods ripped a single up the middle to score Johnson giving FSW a 7-0 lead after two.
The onslaught continued in the third as Laudino drove in a pair of ducks off the pond to make it 9-0 and Johnson singled her home with a blooper to shallow right to push it to a 10-0 ballgame.
South Florida got their only run of the game in the fifth after some sloppy FSW defense, but it wasn't enough to keep things going as the Bucs finished them off in a 10-1 run rule victory.
FSW finished with 11 hits in the win, led by the top of their lineup in Laudino, Corbin, and Johnson who finished a combined 6 for 7 with six RBI's and seven runs scored for the Bucs. Yawn also had a nice game at the bottom of the order, going 2 for 2 with two runs scored. Kelsi Collins was sharp in the circle for the Bucs despite not needing to me. She improved to 19-0 on the year, going all five innings and scattering three hits while striking out nine.
#1 FSW/SOUTH FLORIDA STATE GAME ONE BOX SCORE
The Bucs again didn't waste any time getting their bats going in game two and again it was Bowers in the middle of it for FSW. After the Panthers got an unearned run in the top half of the first, Bowers sent a 2-2 pitch towering out of the yard in the bottom half of the inning, a three run shot to quickly put the Bucs in front 3-1.
FSW blew things wide open with a huge third inning. It began with a triple off the wall from Laudino who quickly scored on a sacrifice fly from Corbin to make it 4-1. With two outs in the inning they went off. Woods tripled home a run to push the lead to 5-1 ahead of a bullet two run home run from Pallas Potter to make it a 7-1 game. They didn't stop there, reloading the bases before Laudino was walked to force another run home. Elsie Rivera singled to left center to score two more to push the lead to 10-1 before Johnson was hit by a pitch to load the bases once again. That's where the shot of the night came as Bowers absolutely unloaded on the first pitch she saw, hitting a tracer over the wall in left center for a grand slam, opening up the FSW lead to 14-1.
That is how things would end in the fifth as Sarah Lawton came in and worked a 1-2-3 inning with a pair of strikeouts to give the Bucs a 14-1 run rule win to finish the doubleheader sweep.
The Bucs had 13 hits in the win including at least one from every starter in the lineup. Bowers was the story though, finishing a perfect 3 for 3 with two home runs and seven RBI's in the win for the Bucs. Haley Ellefson earned the win in the circle to improve to a perfect 12-0 on the year. She went four innings, allowing five hits and one unearned run before giving way to Lawton in the fifth.
#1 FSW/SOUTH FLORIDA STATE GAME TWO BOX SCORE
The Bucs move to 41-1 on the year with the wins, pushing their Suncoast Conference record to a league best 8-1. South Florida State continues a rough March, falling to 22-16 overall and 2-8 in conference action.
FSW is back in action on Thursday in a makeup game at City of Palms Park as they will take on Polk State at 3 PM in a single game contest.
