WINTER PARK, Fla. (March 28, 2026) – Baseball split their doubleheader with Lynn on Saturday, falling in game one by a score of 7-2 before bouncing back in game two for a 6-5 win. The Tars now stand at 20-8, 11-4 SSC while the Knights move to 14-16, 4-8 SSC.

Game One
Lynn 7, Rollins 2

Brett Dennis struck out the first two batters he saw in the first, and then immediately received a jolt from his offense. Joey Rubin led off with a single, followed by a walk to Collin Hughes, and a single from Matthew Mateo to load the bases. Mason Elrod then sent a ball to right that brought in Rubin. Next up was Connor O'Sullivan, who received the bunt sign from head coach Jon Sjogren for a squeeze play. Unfortunately the Knights snuffed it out, getting Hughes at home. Jimmy Thies was up next, and sent a ball to the gap for a double, but only one run scored as O'Sullivan was cut down at home.

Rollins threatened again in the second with two on, but a double play nullified the threat.

Lynn scored once in the third with a single and a double, halving the lead. They took the lead in the fourth when Bruce Thornton singled to left, scoring Joel Tapia-Melo and Amaris Harrison, who had both walked.

The Knights added two more runs in the seventh with a stroke of bad luck. With two outs and two strikes, the infield was told to shift to the right side of the infield with a lefty up. Unfortunately, Bryant Zayas slapped a grounder to the exact spot that the shortstop should have been standing, leading to two RBI.

In the bottom of the seventh, Rollins had two on with no outs. Mauri Bejarano tried to bunt for a single, but was thrown out. On the next play, Rubin lifted a flyball to right that was caught, followed by a cannon throw from Charlie Devito that put out Jayden Brown at home for a double play.

Lynn added two more in the ninth to make the final of 7-2.

Brett Dennis took the loss with a line of five innings, three hits, three runs, two walks, and six strikeouts. Rubin was the only player on offense with two hits.

Game Two
Rollins 6, Lynn 5

Both teams had a runner in scoring position in the first, but neither could bring the run in. The same situation happened in the second, and in the third, both teams went down in order. 

It wasn't until the fourth that the scoreboard showed some activity. Lynn brought in a run with an RBI single, and then had runners on the corners with one out. Cole Beck punched a grounder to the left side, bringing in a second run. However, on the play, Mauri Bejarano made a fantastic diving stop to keep the ball in the infield. He was able to catch Amaris Harrison off the bag at second, followed by Jimmy Thies throwing out Beck at second on the same play, ending the inning. 

JR Struk was able to work around a leadoff double in the sixth, keeping the game 2-0. The Tars offense finally showed up in the bottom half, leading to a big inning. It started with big Elvin Figueroa beating out a groundball to first for a single. He was pinch-run for by Ethan Beal, who was moved to second on a single from O'Sullivan. Thies then beat out a bunt to third, loading the bases with no outs. A pitching change was made, and Jayden Brown immediately brought in Beal with a sac fly to center. Next up was AJ Barrios, who ripped a single to right, tying the game at two. 

Bejarano continued the inning with a single to center, plating Thies and Barrios. Rubin continued the trend, ripping a double to left, leading to another pitching change. It didn't matter. Hughes drove in another run with a single. After a strikeout and an intentional walk to load the bases, O'Sullivan drew a walk to drive in a sixth run of the inning. 

This one was not over though. After a clean seventh inning, David Austen found himself in a pickle in the eighth with two on and no out. Coby Vallee came in, and gave up a double to right that scored both runners. A groundout a few batters later scored another run, making it 6-5 before Vallee ended the inning with a big strikeout. 

In the ninth inning, another baserunning blunder ended up deciding the game. With two outs and runners on second and third, Bryant Zayas decided to try and steal home. The Tars were ready for it as Vallee fired home and Stephen Deans applied the tag, ending the game. 

Struk earned the win in relief, tossing 2.2 innings with three hits and no earned runs. Rubin and Barrios each had two hits, while Bejarano led all Rollins hitters with two RBI. 

The Tars will have a couple days off before they head to St. Augustine to take on the Flagler Saints on Tuesday, March 31. First pitch is scheduled for 5pm.