SCF Baseball @ Polk State Game Three Recap

The SCF baseball team (18-10, 3-3 Suncoast) pulled away with their third straight win in Suncoast Conference play as they swept Polk State (11-15, 1-5 Suncoast) by a score of 10-0 via mercy rule for the second straight game at Robert C. Wynn Field. With the win, the Manatees are now 26-21 against the Eagles.

For the game, SCF head coach Tim Hill II sent sophomore Aaron Brown to the mound while Polk State head coach Al Corbeil sent freshman Kyle Gamble to counter.

In the bottom of the first inning, the Manatees would get on the board first. Beginning with back-to-back singles from sophomores Shane Shifflett and Brian Dillingham, fellow sophomore Bryce Hulett would send Shifflett home with a sacrifice fly before sophomore Giovany Lorenzo clocked a double to right to give the Manatees a 2-0 lead. The Manatees would then extend the lead further as freshman Max Dineen sent Lorenzo home on fielding error before freshman Nick Winkelmeyer sent Dineen home to make it 4-0 SCF.

While the Manatees kept the lead, Brown was doing his part of the job on the mound as he struck out four batters in four innings.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Manatees would continue adding runs to the scoreboard after a two-run homer off the bat of sophomore Josh Crouch. This was Crouch's second home run of the season. It was the same way in the bottom of the fifth after a Shifflett RBI single sent Crouch home before sophomore John Shields scored on a passed ball to make it 8-0 SCF.

After a scoreless sixth, the Manatees were able to seal the deal for the mercy rule. After freshman Jonathan Alonso drew a leadoff walk before Hulett hit a single, Lorenzo made it clear that it was gonna be an SCF victory as he cleared the bases with a double for the win.

Brown would earn his fourth win of the season after throwing one-hit seventh inning shutout while walking one and striking out six.

Gamble would be credited with his first loss of the season after giving up six runs (five earned) on seven hits with one strikeout in three innings.

The Eagle bullpen of Alex Goff, Lazaro Rodriguez, Billy McKay and Trent Sinkfield.

Shifflett, Dillingham, Lorenzo, Crouch and sophomore Collin Moore all finished with two hits each with Lorenzo and Crough each finishing with a multi-RBI game.

Up Next:
The Manatees open their next conference series against South Florida State College (11-17, 2-4 Suncoast) beginning in Avon Park on Friday, March 15, then at SCF on Saturday, March 16 at home before returning to Avon Park for the series finale on Monday, March 17.