Posted: May 25, 2022
YUMA, Az.- Belle Sardja fired a three hit shutout and super sophomore Pallas Potter came through with a clutch two out RBI single in the 6th inning to break a scoreless tie as the #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers blanked the #10 Chattanooga State Tigers 1-0 Wednesday to advance to the NJCAA National Tournament Quarterfinals.
The Bucs had the game's first two scoring chances as they put a runner in scoring position in the 1st and loaded the bases in the 2nd but were unable to score as the contest remained scoreless after two.
Chattanooga State got their leadoff hitter on in the 3rd, but Bucs catcher Taylor Jensen quickly erased her at second trying to steal and Belle Sardja dialed up a strikeout to end the inning to keep the game scoreless at the end of three complete innings of action.
After a quiet 4th, the Bucs had another golden opportunity in the 5th as Shenita Tucker legged out a bunt single, stole her 60th base of the season and advanced to third on a throwing error by the Tigers catcher, but a pop up on the infield ended the threat and kept it a 0-0 game at the end of five.
With one out in the 6th, McKenzie Wittenberg ripped a single back up the middle before moving into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt from Charlotte Drijvers. With two outs, Pallas Potter came up huge for the Bucs, muscling a single over the Chattanooga State infield to drive home Wittenberg to break the scoreless tie and put FSW in front 1-0.
With the momentum now on the side of the Bucs, Sardja made sure to keep it that way in the bottom of the 6th, getting three straight groundouts back to herself to keep FSW on top 1-0.
Tucker picked up her third hit and stole her third base of the game with two outs in the 7th, but was stranded at second at inning's end as the Bucs were unable to add any insurance to their one run lead.
They didn't need it though as Sardja took the ball to finish what she started in the bottom of the 7th and sat the Tigers down 1-2-3 to close Chattanooga State out as the Bucs dugout erupted in cheers with a 1-0 0 victory.
Sardja went the distance in the circle, allowing just three hits in her third shutout of the season. She improves to 12-2 on the year while lowering her ERA to just 1.05 on the season. The Bucs offense outhit the Tigers 7-3, led by Tucker who continued her hot start to her first National Tournament, going 3-4 with three stolen bases in the win while Potter and Wittenberg each had a hit, Wittenberg scoring the game's only run and Potter notching the lone RBI of the contest.
FSW moves to 51-5 on the year with the win while Chattanooga State drops to 53-9.
The Bucs advance to the tournament quarterfinals where they will take on #5 Odessa Thursday at 1:00 PM (EDT) with a trip to the final four on the line.