TAMPA, Fla. (April 26, 2019) – Rollins wrapped by its Sunshine State Conference series with Tampa on Saturday, falling to the third-ranked Spartans 4-2 in game one and 9-5 in the nightcap.
The Tars drop to 24-19; 11-13 in SSC play and Tampa improves 33-11; 16-8 SSC. Rollins came into the game ranked No. 10 in the South Region ranking with UT sitting atop the grid.
Jack Gonzalez ran his hitting streak to 22 games, going 1-4 in game one and 2-5 with three RBI in game two.
Game 1:
The Tars led 2-1 in the fourth inning of game one, but a big fifth inning by the Spartans proved to be the difference. Cameron Montgomery led the Tars by hitting 1-4 at the plate with one homerun. Six differnece players had base hits with Kyle Hintz and Nick Santucci belting doubles.
Whit Drennan took the loss on the mound, pitching in four innings with three strikeouts and allowing two runs. Starter Garrett Leonard pitched in four innings with four strikeouts and surrendering two runs.
Alec Aleywine led UT, hitting 3-4 with one homerun and three RBIs. Yorvis Torrealba, Stevie Mangrum and Danny Sirven also had hits on the day.
James Reynolds took the win with six strikeout and allowing two runs over five innings. Tyler Beck picked up a four-inning save with seven strikeouts.
Aleywine homered in the second to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead. The Tars fought back in the third with a Gonzalez single bringing in Hintz. Montgomery's bomb to outfield for a solo homerun in the fourth gave the Tars a 2-1 lead.
Tampa tied it up in the fourth on a Aleywine single and took the lead in the fifth with another pair of runs. The Tars were then kept off the board the rest of the way.
GAME 2:
The Tars got off to a slow start in game one, falling in a 7-0 hole and not being able to recorver.
Gonzalez led the way by hitting 2-5 with one homerun and two RBIs. Jerod Herron hit 2-3 at the plate with a double and two RBIs. Jimmy Robbins took a loss, tossing four innings with three strikeouts. Tate Stone-Frisina also pitched the final four frames, surrending three runs and six hits with three strikeouts.
Torrealba took the lead for the Spartans, batting 3-4 with one homerun. Luke McDonald went 2-5 with a double. Tanner Foster took the win on the mound, pitching in 6.1 innings with four strikeouts and allowed two runs.
Torrealba got things started for UT in the third with a three-run homer. Another run came in the fourth for the Spartans and a Mangrum two-run homer in the fifth put Rollins down 6-0. Yorrealba hit his second home run of the game, this time a solo shot, in the sixth to make it a 7-0 score.
Herron got the Tars on the board in the seventh with a two RBI double that plated Brundage and Ayala. The Spartans again answered in the bottom of the seventh as Stephen Smith tripled to score Nick DeTringo and was brought in with a Mikey Navarette single.
Gonzales singled for the Tars in the eighth and, after a Luke Reidy double, scored off a Cameron Meehan pinch hit single, getting the Tars to within 9-3. Gonzalez then finished off his day with a two-run shot in the night, making the final score 9-5.
Rollins are back at home for their final home series against Embry-Riddle Friday, May 3. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m. at Alfond Stadium. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest #TARnation news by following Rollins Sports on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
