MIAMI SHORES, Fla. (April 5, 2025) – Rollins secured a series sweep Saturday, edging Barry in a pair of narrow contests. The Tars strong start helped them nab a 5-3 win in game one before senior
Emily MacMullen was absolutely masterful in game two, powering Rollins to a 2-1 extra innings victory.
Game One
Looking to secure a series win, the Tars jumped all over Barry in the top of the first of Saturday's game one. Bri Perantoni got the party started with a leadoff single for the second straight game.
Madi Carr reached with the help of a Buccaneer's error and one batter later,
Jaden Walker deposited a three-run homer over the right field fence. Before anyone could blink, Rollins had grabbed a 3-0 lead.
Barry answered, though, with consecutive hits followed by two walks later in the inning to bring the score to 3-1 in the Tars favor.
Both teams went quietly in the second, but with the heart of the Rollins order due up in the third, the Tars were hungry for more. That is exactly what they got thanks to consecutive singles by
Brooke Theisen and Carr which were followed by productive outs by Walker and
Brie Michelli. It was a Michelli sacrifice fly that did the job to score the speedy Theisen, giving the Tars a run to pad their lead.
Unfortunately for the Tars, Barry's heart of the order had the same ideas in their half of the third. Back-to-back singles opened the inning before a pair of quick outs. With Rollins' starter
Reese Twiggs looking to get out of a jam, a couple of well-timed hits gave the Buccaneers two runs pulling them within one of the Tars.
The score would remain 4-3 Rollins until the fifth inning, which followed a similar script of the last Tars' scoring sequence. A leadoff single by Theisen began the frame and two batter later, Michelli produced a clutch two-out RBI single. The insurance run was helpful, but proved to be unnecessary for Rollins' reliever
Rachel Matthiesen.
Matthiesen entered the game in the fourth and threw up nothing but goose eggs on the scoreboard. Through the final three frames after Rollins had extended the lead to 5-3, the freshman allowed just one hit. In each inning, Barry had a runner reach, but Mattheisen showed her poise to close out a tightly contested game. In the process, Matthiesen lowered her ERA to 1.07 across nearly 20 IP on the season and sealed a series victory for the Tars.
Game Two
Friday starter
Emily MacMullen returned to the circle for the Tars in game two and topped her series opening performance by tossing an absolute gem.
MacMullen cruised through the first three innings, stranding a runner in each frame, and slinging zeroes on the scoreboard. Unfortunately for the Tars, the story was the same for their offense. Rollins left two runners on base through the first three innings but produced nothing to show for it.
Barry broke the scoreless tie in the bottom of the fourth with a timely, two-out base knock to score a runner who had reached on an error. MacMullen limited the damage, though, and entering the top of the fifth, Rollins trailed by just a run. The deficit would be short lived.
Barry plunked two Tars to begin the fifth, putting two aboard before
Cambrie Todd's one-out single loaded the bases. Then, facing an 0-2 count, Bri Perantoni delivered again, this time with an RBI single to tie the score. Rollins would strand a pair, but Perantoni's base knock to the game at a standstill, where it would stay for a while.
It appeared Rollins might have something brewing in the top of the sixth, with the first two batters reaching at the hands of Buccaneer blunders, but the Tars went down in order afterwards to strand two again.
Barry followed suit in the bottom half and entering the seventh the game remained tied. Rollins down in order in their at-bats, setting the table for a walk-off chance for Barry. With two on and two out, Barry's Sofia Chamorro appeared to have ended the contest, hitting a sharp line drive to right field. But a sprawling Bri Perantoni had other ideas. The freshman's web-gem of a grab gave the Tars new life and sent this one into extras.
Each team left a runner on in the eighth, with MacMullen again cracking down with the game on the line. Then, in the ninth, the Tars broke through behind their fifth-year leader. With two outs,
Grace Germer tripled home
Claire Long to give the Tars a 2-1 advantage and put the pressure on the Buccaneers to answer.
But MacMullen continued to deal. The senior conceded a two-out single, but buckled down for the third out to secure a sweep for the Tars. Remarkably, it is the second outing of MacMullen's career that went nine innings against Barry. The first resulted in a back-breaking 1-0 defeat. This time, MacMullen got revenge and sent the Tars back to Winter Park with brooms in hand.
Rollins returns to MLK Park next weekend to take on conference leading Tampa. The Spartans were #1 entering this weekend before a series loss. With two teams going in opposite directions, the Tars will look to seize the momentum with the first pitch of the series taking place at 6pm on Friday night.
