WINTER PARK, Fla. (February 23, 2013) - In what
was supposed to be the Tars' first road series of the year, the
Rollins baseball team split Saturday's double-dip with the West
Alabama Tigers. Rollins won 11-1 in game one and fell 3-2 in the
following game at Alfond Stadium.
Senior Brian
Lattanzi led the Tars at the plate with a 5-for-8 performance
on the day. He scored one run and recorded one stolen base. Evan
Rivera hit .500 (3-for-6) in two games with a double, a pair of
runs and an RBI.
Zach
Persky hit his second collegiate home run in game one and
finished 3-for-8 with two doubles, two runs and an RBI. Lucas
Valelly, who replaced Brandon
Curson in the outfield, went 2-for-2 with a double, one run and
four RBI.
In the first game of the day, West Alabama took the early lead
scoring a lone run in the top of the second. Rollins answered back
in the home half with four runs of their own.
Persky led off the second frame with a solo home run. Evan
Rivera got things rolling for the Tars as he reached on a
fielder's choice, advanced to third on a Steve
Betcherman base hit and then scored on a Thomas
Kelly RBI double. Betcherman and Kelly then scored on a Hunter
Mayfield double.
After UWA scored in the second, southpaws Brett
Mueller and Eric
Morse held the Tigers scoreless through the remainder of the
game and only allowed seven hits. Mueller (1-0) earned the win in
a career-high 7.2 innings of work and matched his season-high of
six strikeouts.
Rollins scored multiple runs in the fourth, seventh and eighth
innings with two, three and two runs respectively.
West Alabama's Barry Meeks (0-1) was tagged with the loss in 3.1
innings, allowing six runs (four earned) on 10 hits while striking
out one.
In game two, Rollins didn't fare as well, dropping a 3-2
decision to the Tigers. West Alabama scored in the opening frame
but was taken back as the Tars scored one run of their own in the
bottom of the second.
The score would remain tied until the top of the fifth as the
Tigers took a one-run lead and then pushed it to a 3-1 lead in the
following inning. Rollins chipped away at the deficit in the home
half of the sixth as Boston
Langley scored after beginning the inning with a leadoff
triple.
Langley's run would be the final for the Tars as Jeremy White
closed for the Tigers, facing four batters, to pick up the save.
Taylor Bratt (2-1) was tagged with his second win of the year in
5.1 innings of action. He fanned one batter and issued one walk,
while allowing two runs on six hits.
The Tars will wrap up the weekend series against the Tigers on
Sunday, Feb. 24 with first pitch set for 11 a.m.
