Bradenton, Fla - The SCF baseball team (18-18, 7-1 Suncoast) will now be put to their biggest test in conference play as they will take on Polk State (22-12, 7-1 Suncoast) to wrap up the first half of Suncoast play. Game one will take place at Robert C. Wynn Field Friday night, March 24 at 5 pm before heading to Winter Haven for game two at Bing Tyus Yard Saturday afternoon, March 25 at 1 pm. The series will return to Wynn Field Monday night, March 27 at 6 pm before wrapping up the series back at Bing Tyus Yard Wednesday night, March 29 at 6 pm.
Suncoast Conference Standings:
1. SCF (18-18, 7-1)
2. Polk State (21-13, 6-2)
3. St. Pete (9-19, 3-5)
4. Hillsborough (5-27, 0-8)
Last Time Out:
The Manatees completed their first series sweep over Hillsborough (12-1, 16-6, 8-6 and 8-7). They are currently in first place in the Suncoast Conference. It was their first sweep in conference so far.
New Hit King:
Sophomore Kevin Karstetter has lead the way hitting wise for the Manatees. Karstetter is batting .385 with 57 hits, eight home runs and 44 RBI. In the series finale against Hillsborough, he went 2-for-4 with three RBI.
During the second game against HCC, Karstetter set a new record in SCF baseball program history as he surpassed Al Corbeil (184, 1998-99) as the all-time leader in career hits. He has 190 hits in his three seasons with the Manatees.
In addition during the series finale against HCC, Karstetter hit in his 26th straight game and tied with Tom McKay (26, 1967) for the longest hitting streak in program history and needs to hit in one more game to hold the record.
It was announced via Twitter that Karstetter will be transferring to Arizona State University with two years of eligibility remaining.
Walking the Line:
Speaking in regards to records, sophomore Brayden Woodburn is also attempting to set a record of his own. Woodburn is currently batting .331 with 41 hits, three home runs, 22 RBI, 16 stolen bases and 37 walks. In the series finale against Hillsborough, Woodburn brought in the game-winning run while going 3-for-5 with an RBI and a stolen base.
His 37 walks are not only ranked #1 in the state, but are ranked #1 in the nation. He has 77 career walks so far and needs He needs 23 to surpass Jody Reed (59; 1981-82) for the most walks in a single season and 33 to surpass Joey Collis (109; 1994-95) for most career walks.
Woodburn is not the only player that is nationally ranked in drawing walks as freshman Erick Almonte follows on the same path. Almonte is currently batting .330 with 36 hits, one home run, 21 RBI and 27 walks. He was 1-for-4 with two runs and a walk in the finale against HCC. His number of walks are ranked #4 in the state and #11 in the nation.
Pitch Life:
Freshmen Michael Forret and Ed Wagner are two of three pitchers leading the way on the mound for the Manatees.
Forret is 5-2 overall with a 3.89 ERA, 12 walks and 49 strikeouts. His 49 strikeouts are ranked #31 in the nation. In his last outing, the one-time FCSAA Pitcher of the Week threw a seven-inning complete game with 10 strikeouts against Hillsborough in the opening game. He will start game one for the opener against Polk State.
Wagner is currently 4-1 with a 4.25 ERA, 19 walks and 40 strikeouts. In the second game against Hillsborough, the former George Washington University Colonial earned the win with four strikeouts in five innings. He will start game two.
Weaving for the Week:
For freshman Jeremy Weaver, he has made a name for himself since being in the starting rotation. Weaver is currently 2-1 with a 3.64 ERA, 29 walks and 54 strikeouts (#17 in the nation). He earned a no-decision in the finale against HCC. Additionally, the Winter Haven native was named the FCSAA Pitcher of the Week after his eight-inning shutout against St. Pete.
Game Time Wings:
Sophomore Ben Gilbert is one of the three hybrid players to make some noise for the Manatees. Gilbert is batting .327 with 18 hits, three home runs and 13 RBI, while on the mound he is 1-0 with 3.21 ERA, two saves, nine walks and 21 strikeouts. He earned his first win in the series finale against his former team with five strikeouts while going 2-for-4 with an RBI at the plate.
It was announced on Twitter that Gilbert will be transferring to Florida Atlantic University with two years of eligibility remaining.
Powering Up:
Alongside Karstetter, sophomores Lucas Ismaili and Mario Lopez, Jr. and freshman Jayce Blalock have shown some strong power in their bats lately.
Ismaili is currently batting .404 with 51 hits, six home runs and 39 RBI. He went 1-for-5 with an RBI in the final game against HCC.
Lopez is currently batting .375 with 33 hits, two home runs and 36 RBI. He played a key part in the finale against his former team as he went 1-for-5 with two RBI in the win.
Blalock is currently batting .216 with 11 hits, four home runs and 13 RBI. He was 1-for-4 with two RBI in the third game against HCC.
Wild Games:
Sophomores Austin Dearing, Victor Sanchez, Richie Morales, Liam Moreno, Connor Hults and Ryan Stefiuk and freshmen Jalen Hairston and LT Cockrill remain as key wildcard players for the Manatees.
Dearing is batting .265 with 27 hits and eight RBI.
Sanchez is batting .329 with 27 hits, three home runs and 20 RBI. He was 1-for-2 with a walk last game.
Morales, one of two hybrid players, is batting .339 with 21 hits and 10 RBI at the plate. On the mound, he is 2-0 with a 5.06 ERA, one walk and two strikeouts. He was 3-for-5 with a stolen base in the finale against HCC.
Moreno is batting .254 with 15 hits and seven RBI.
Hults has also been making noise on the mound in relief as he is 1-0 with a 5.63 ERA, eight walks and 12 strikeouts. He threw a third of a scoreless inning of relief in his last outing.
Stefiuk is 1-3 with a 5.27 ERA, one save 17 walks and 36 strikeouts. In his last outing, the transfer from Vanderbilt threw a no-decision in the third game against HCC with two walks and seven strikeouts in six and a third.
Hairston, the third hybrid on the team, is batting .324 with 11 hits, one home run and three RBI, while on the mound he is 1-0 with a 6.57 ERA, five walks and 11 strikeouts.
Cockrill is batting .271 with 13 hits, one home run and 10 RBI.
Nations Best Stats:
At the national level, the Manatees have had several players in the top 50 in the nation in different categories.
Karstetter: eight home runs (tied for #30), 149 at-bats (#1), 57 hits (tied for #1), 12 doubles (tied for #15), three triples (tied for #29), 43 runs (tied for #7), 44 RBI (#8 in the nation)
Woodburn:, 41 hits (tied for #31), 124 at-bats (tied for #8), three triples (tied for #29 46 runs ( #4), 37 walks (#1), 15 stolen bases (tied for #44),
Ismaili: 51 hits (tied for #7), 37 runs (tied for #27), 120 at-bats (#13), 39 RBI (tied for #20),
Almonte: 113 at-bats (#27), 27 walks (#11),
Lopez: 15 doubles (tied for #1), 36 RBI (tied for #27)
Forret: five wins (tied for #18), 39.1 innings pitched (tied for #41), 49 strikeouts (tied for #31)
Stefiuk: 42.2 innings pitched (tied for #20)
Wagner: 42.1 innings pitched (tied for #23)
Weaver: 54 strikeouts (#17)
Scouting Polk State:
The Eagles are coming off of splitting their second conference series with St. Pete. They would win game one and three by scores of 8-7 and 3-2, but would lose games two and four by scores of 13-7 and 16-13. It was their first two losses in conference play and as a result, they would get bumped down to second place.
On the mound, freshman Evan Kohler leads the way going 4-0 with a 2.23 ERA, 11 walks and 61 strikeouts. His ERA is ranked #44 in the nation, while his strikeouts rank #9. In his last outing, he threw seven shutout innings with nine strikeouts in a win over St. Pete.
Another player on the mound for the Eagles is classmate Trevor Caldwell. Caldwell is 3-1 with a 3.60 ERA, 26 walks and 51 strikeouts (tied for #25 in the nation). In his last outing, he threw a no-decision in the third game against St. Pete where he threw five and two-thirds innings with seven strikeouts.
At the plate, sophomore Nelson Taylor leads the way batting .361 with 35 hits, five home runs, 26 RBI and 21 stolen bases, while classmate Travis Stapleton is also batting .361 with 35 hits, two home runs and 26 RBI.
Series History:
Overall, the Manatees hold a 38-30 record against the Eagles.
How to Keep Up:
Livestats will be provided by GameChanger. For games one and three, they will air livestream on the SCF Sports Network. Fans can also keep up the Manatees on Twitter.
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