Spartans Cruise by Indians in Game One

TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa Spartans (26-6) baseball team defeated the Catawba College Indians (24-13) by a final score of 14-5 on Friday evening. The Tampa victory marked their fourth consecutive win.

Christopher Williams got the start for the Spartans and cruised to victory. Williams went seven innings pitched giving up six hits, two earned runs, and striking out four. The strong performance was enough for his sixth win of the season, putting him at 6-2 on the season.

Tampa struck first in the bottom of the second inning scoring three runs on three hits. Cody deNoyelles hit a sacrifice fly that brought Laz Rivera home to score the first run of the game. Chris Gaffney added to the Spartan lead with a two-run single that brought around Adrian Chacon and Vin Cosenzo. 

The Spartans offense exploded in the bottom of the third, scoring five runs on three hits. Cody deNoyelles added to his stat line with a two-run double that brought Rivera and Osborne in to score. Vin Cosenzo and Adrian Chacon had a sacrifice fly each, extending the Spartan lead to 8-1.

UT added breathing room in the bottom of the fifth with three more runs off of three hits. Adrian Chacon hit a two-run double to left center that scored deNoyelles and Piatt. Chris Gaffney hit a sacrifice fly to left field that allowed Cosenzo to tag up, giving Tampa an 11-1 lead.

J.D. Osborne crushed a three-run home run to deep left field in the bottom of the eighth, extending the Tampa lead to 14-5.

Michael Calkins came on in relief in the eighth inning and got the job done for the Spartans. Calkins went two innings pitched allowing one run, two hits, and striking out 3. The outing was enough to seal the Spartans victory.

Tampa will be back in action tomorrow afternoon in a doubleheader against the Catawba Indians. First pitch for game one of the doubleheader is scheduled for 1:00 PM at the University of Tampa baseball field. The game will be available for live video stream through TampaSpartans.com

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