Baseball Takes it to Tampa JV

Tampa, Fla - The RV SCF baseball team (10-5, 2-1 Citrus) got to double digit wins on the road as they defeated the University of Tampa JV (4-3) 15-6.

"The guys played really well tonight," said head coach Tim Hill II. "It was a good nigh all around."

Hill II sent sophomore Duke McCarron to the mound, while Tampa JV head coach Mark Johnson went with freshman Garrett Hill to counter.

The Manatees would open on the scoreboard first at the top of the first as freshman Ben Ryan would bring in sophomore CJ Richard. One inning later, they would increase their lead. After back-to-back singles by freshman Bernard Barnes and sophomore Mario Trivella, freshman Will Rawls would hit a single and bring in Barnes before classmate Clayton Evans drove in Trivella and Rawls before Richard showed off his power with a two-run homer for his second of the season to make it 6-0 SCF. Trivella would then make it 7-0 after scoring off of a Spartan fielding error.

Hill II would then send sophomore Gavyn Bowen to come in for the bottom of the third. This would give the Spartans a chance to get on the board as freshman AJ Graham would hit a three-run homer for his first of the season and cut the Manatees' lead to 7-3.

After freshman Austin Monahan shut the Spartans down in the fourth, the Manatees would add to their lead at the top of the fifth starting with a one-out single by Rawls. After Evans reached base on a fielder's choice before stealing second, Richard would send out a double and bring in Evans before he scored on a fielding error to make it 9-3 SCF. The Spartans would then cut the lead to 9-6 with their final runs of the game after a Manatee error and a two-run home run by sophomore Brian O'Connell III for his first home run of the season.

At the top of the sixth, the Manatees would get their 10th run on the board as Barnes scored off of an RBI single by Rawls to make it 10-6. One inning later, the lead would increase beginning with a leadoff walk and a stolen base by Richard before scoring on a passed. After freshman Mattie Counts hit a single, Ryan would bring in Counts with a single of his own before freshman Myles Davis brought in Ryan with a RBI groundout for a 13-6 lead.

At the top of the ninth, the Manatees would add their final runs on the board. After sophomores Allan Gil Fernandez and Hayden Gustavson hit back-to-back singles, Davis would bring in the sophomores with a double to make it 15-6 before the Manatees sealed the victory.

McCarron would earn a no-decision after throwing two scoreless innings with one hit, two walks and one strikeout. Freshman James Kleiven would earn his first win of the season after giving up three runs on two hits with one walk in one inning of relief.

Three Manatees had a multi-hit game. It was Richard that would lead the way offensively as he went 3-for-3 with a home run, four RBI, two walks, four runs and two stolen bases. Rawls would follow going 3-for-5 with two RBI, while Barnes went 2-for-6 with two runs scored while throwing one scoreless inning of relied with two strikeouts.

Davis would follow offensively as he went 1-for-2 with three RBI. Ryan (1-for-2, one run, one RBI and two walks; one scoreless inning of relief), Trivella (1-for-3, two runs and one walk), Evans (1-for-5, one run and two RBI), Gustavson (1-for-1, one run), Gil Fernandez (1-for-2, two runs) and freshman Holden Bruaner (1-for-5, one stolen base) had the remaining six hits.

Citrus Conference Standings:

1. #4 FSW (13-2, 3-0)

2. #22 Indian River State (11-3, 2-1)

3. Eastern Florida State (11-5, 2-1)

4. SCF (10-5, 2-1)

5. Miami Dade (7-7, 2-1)

6. Polk State (9-9, 2-1)

7. RV Central Florida (12-3, 1-2)

8. Seminole State College of Florida (9-6, 1-2)

9. Santa Fe (8-9, 1-2)

10. Hillsborough (6-8, 1-2)

11. Daytona State (3-11, 1-2)

12. St. Pete (2-11, 0-3)

Up Next:

The Manatees will resume conference play as they face Polk State (9-9, 2-1 Citrus) Thursday, February 20 and Saturday, February 22.