No. 1 Spartans Take Two in Friday Doubleheader
TAMPA, Fla. - The No. 1 ranked University of Tampa Spartans baseball team picked up two wins over the visiting Stillman College Tigers, Friday evening from UT Baseball Field. After defeating the Tigers by a 10-4 score, the Spartans returned in the second game of the doubleheader for a 2-0 victory.
Senior lefty Chase Sparkman took the mound in the win, tossing six complete innings and striking out three. He allowed eight hits before junior RHP Connor Andrews appeared for two innings and senior Taylor Brookes closed out the ninth. The pitching staff allowed 11 hits.
Due to a schedule change earlier in the week, the first game of the day began at 4 p.m. The top-ranked Spartans came out swinging offensively, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first inning to take an early lead. Nick Flair, Ian Townsend, and Cody deNoyelles all registered RBI in the outing.
After picking up another run in the bottom of the second on a Giovanny Alfonso RBI single, the Spartans tacked on another four runs in the bottom of the third to garner a 9-0 lead. Ian Townsend led off the inning with a triple, and one out later, Nick Tindall sent a single to the outfield to pick up an RBI. After a groundout sent Tindall to second and a hit-by-pitch to Casey Scoggins gave the Spartans two base runners, back-to-back singles from Andrew Amaro and Alfonso gave Tampa two more runs. Senior Stephen Dezzi wrapped up the inning with another RBI single, and the Spartans' lead was extended to nine.
The visiting Tigers scored in three separate innings during the contest, but it would not be enough for the Spartans' offense. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Tampa scored their tenth and final run of the game, forcing a 10-4 victory.
The second game of the evening began slowly, as neither team scored until the fourth inning. It was again the Spartans who scored first, thanks to a combination of Tampa offense and Stillman defense. Alfonso kickstarted the inning after reaching on an error and advancing to second base on a single from Dezzi. A wild pitch from Stillman lefty Hunter Hood then pushed both runners into scoring position, and it was Nick Flair who answered the call with a sacrifice flyout to centerfield. The run would serve as the defining lead of the game.
Alfonso blasted a two-out solo homer in the bottom of the sixth to extend the Spartans' lead to two, and that was enough for Tampa to take home their 13th win of the 2015 season.
Sophomore Jake Mielock eared the start for the Spartans in the second game of the doubleheader, tossing five complete innings and allowing just one hit. Dylan Barrow appeared in the sixth and seventh inning for relief duties
On the day, the Spartans tallied 17 hits and six walks.
No. 1 Tampa will wrap up their weekend series against Stillman College on Saturday, February 28 when they host the Tigers at UT Baseball Stadium. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. Live stats as well as a live video webcast will be available through www.tampaspartans.tv.
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