OCALA, Fla.- In an NJCAA Top 10 battle Thursday in Ocala, the #3 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers dropped game one of their doubleheader with the #6 Central Florida Patriots 8-2 before scoring five times in the 7^th inning in game two to erase a 3-0 deficit to salvage a split with their new Citrus Conference rivals. 

 

The Bucs had a scoring chance right away in the top of the 1^st of game one, putting three runners on base, but a runner caught stealing and a pop out ended the threat and kept FSW off the board early on. 

 

Central Florida loaded the bases in the bottom half of the 1st, but unlike the Bucs, they were able to cash the runs in, getting a pair of sacrifice flies and a two out single to put a three spot up to take an early 3-0 lead. 

 

The Bucs cracked the scoreboard for the first time in the 3^rd as Sietske Drijvers ripped a solo home run with two outs in the frame to cut the Patriot lead to 3-1. 

 

Central Florida opened things up in the 4^th , scoring three times on four hits to pad their lead to 6-1. 

 

The Bucs went down in order in both the 5^th and 6^th innings and the Patriots added rus in both frames to bump their lead to 8-1 after six complete. 

 

FSW got a run on a Virginia Mambelli single in the 7th, but it was too little, too late as Central Florida finished off the game one upset 8-2. 

 

The Bucs were outhit 15-6 in the contest with Skylar Brennan the only FSW hitter to record more than one hit in the loss. Esmee Ames took the loss in the circle, allowing three hits and three runs in the 1^st to fall to 9-3 on the year. 

 

 

The Bucs offensive struggles continued into game two of the twinbill as they went down in order in four of the first five innings.

 

Thankfully for FSW, Bucs ace Lea Chevrier was up to the task, posting four straight zeros against the Patriots offense to keep the game scoreless through 4 1/2. 

 

Central Florida broke through in the 5^th , getting a pair of singles followed by a two out home run to get the scoring going as they took a 3-0 lead after five. 

 

The Bucs went quietly again in the 6^th with a strikeout and a pair of pop outs  but Chevrier worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the frame to keep FSW within striking distance as the game quickly went to the 7^th with the Patriots still in front 3-0. 

 

Down to their final three outs, the Bucs finally found some offense in the 7^th as a pair of singles and a hit batter loaded the bases with the tying runs with nobody out in the inning. A single from Ella Moore broke up the shutout and Nicole Edmiaston was hit by a pitch to force home a run to make it a 3-2 game still with nobody out in the inning. After a groundout got the Patriots their first out of the frame, Sydney McCray drilled a double to the gap in left, bringing home the tying and go ahead run to put FSW in front 4-3. Moments later Drijvers lined a single back up the middle to drive her home to pad the Bucs lead to 5-3 at the end of 6 1/2.  

 

The Bucs looked like they had things in the bag with a two out ground ball on the infield in the 7th, but an FSW error allowed the inning to continue and put the tying runs on base.  But that was as far as it would go as Chevrier dialed up a strikeout on her 119^th pitch of the afternoon to finish off a 5-3 win for the Bucs to split the doubleheader. 

 

Chevrier went the distance in the circle to improve to 12-0 on the year, allowing five hits and three runs while striking out eight. McCray was 2-3 with the game tying and go ahead RBIs atop the FSW order while also walking and stealing her 28^th base of the season in the win. 

 

 

The Bucs and Patriots remain in a three way tie with Indian River atop the Citrus Conference standings at 12-2 with the split while FSW moves to 25-3 overall and Central Florida goes to 21-7. 

 

FSW will remain in Central Florida through Saturday when they take on Santa Fe in doubleheader action in Gainesville beginning at 1 PM.