Bradenton, Fla - After a strong start to start conference, the SCF baseball team (14-18, 3-1 Suncoast) will look to set their sites on the next set of Suncoast Conference play as they face Hillsborough (5-22, 0-4 Suncoast) for the next four games. The Manatees will open the series at George M. Steinbrenner Community Field in Tampa on Friday afternoon, March 17 at 3 pm. They will then head back to Robert C. Wynn Field Saturday afternoon, March 18 at 1 pm. The third game will return to George M. Steinbrenner Community Field Monday afternoon, March 20 at 3 pm before returning back to Wynn Field Wednesday night, March 22 at 6 pm.
Suncoast Conference Standings:
1. Polk State (19-11, 4-0)
2. SCF (14-18, 3-1)
3. St. Pete (7-17, 1-3)
4. Hillsborough (5-22, 0-4)
Last Time Out:
The Manatees are open Suncoast Conference play against St. Pete College. They would split the first two games winning the first one 7-5 at Wynn Field before losing the second game 5-3 in Clearwater. After winning the third game 11-1 in seven innings via mercy rule at home, the Manatees would seal the first series winning by a score of 10-0 in eight innings back in Clearwater. They are currently in second place in the standings behind Polk State.
Pitching the Way:
Freshmen Ed Wagner and Michael Forret lead the way on the mound.
Despite falling in the second game to St. Pete, Wagner still plays strongly on the mound as he is 3-1 with a 3.86 ERA, 16 walks and 36 strikeouts.
Forret won the first game against St. Pete with a seven inning win with 10 strikeouts. He is currently 4-2 with a 4.45 ERA, 10 walks and 39 strikeouts.
Freshman Jeremy Weaver is also on the winning side of things after one of his best outings in the finale against St. Pete. Weaver threw a six-hit shutout with a career-high 10 strikeouts in eight innings. The Winter Haven native is currently 2-1 with a 3.89 ERA, two saves, 24 walks and 43 strikeouts.
Setting the Records Straight:
Sophomore Kevin Karstetter has been the leader this season at the plate. Karstetter is currently batting .368 with 49 hits, seven home runs and 38 RBI.
The Pennsylvanian was 1-for-3 in the finale against St. Pete, but what setting his pace is the hitting records he is aiming for three of the Manatees program records. He currently has 182 hits in his career and needs three to surpass Al Corbeil (184, 1998-99) as the all-time leader in hits. Additionally, Karstetter is also on a hitting streak as he has hit in 22 straight games so far and needs to hit in five more to surpass Tom Mckay's record (26, 1967).
Walking to the Books:
Karstetter is not the only player on the path of records for classmate, Brayden Woodburn, is also on a record path. Woodburn is batting .302 with a 32 hits, two home runs, 19 RBI, 13 stolen bases and 38 walks. His walks are not only #1 in the state, but are in fact #1 in the nation.
Woodburn currently has 76 walks in his career, which include from the 2021 season. He needs 22 to surpass Jody Reed (59; 1981-82) for the most walks in a single season and 32 to surpass Joey Collis (109; 1994-95) for most career walks.
Super Mario Time:
Sophomore Mario Lopez, Jr. has been hot at the plate. Lopez, Jr. is batting 386 with 34 hits, two home runs and 24 RBI. He was 2-for-5 in the series finale against St. Pete with a career-high five RBI.
Adding Power:
Sophomore Lucas Ismaili and Ben Gilbert continue to play their roles on the power game after a good performance in the series against St. Pete.
Ismaili came off of a 3-for-4 game with two RBI, three runs and a stolen base. The former Pitt Panthers is batting .427 with 44 hits, five home runs and 33 RBI. His batting average is actually tied for fifth in the state.
Gilbert, who showed off some power earlier before conference, was 1-for-3 with two RBI against St. Pete. Currently, he is batting .315 with 17 hits, three home runs and 14 RBI. Additionally, while he is on the mound, he has thrown a 2.70 ERA, nine walks and 16 strikeouts in 10 innings.
Walking the Line:
Like Woodburn, freshman Erick Almonte, despite under has also been on the path when it comes to drawing walks. Almonte is batting .333 with 35 hits, one home run, 21 RBI and 26 walks.
Wilding Out:
Sophomores Austin Dearing, Victor Sanchez, Liam Moreno, Richie Morales and Ryan Stefiuk and freshmen Jalen Hairston, Trey Clucas, Jayce Blalock and LT Cockrill are the listed wildcards on the team.
Dearing is batting .276 with 27 hits and eight RBI.
Sanchez is batting .324 with 24 hits, three home runs and 17 RBI.
Moreno, who has been batting well, is batting .245 with 12 hits and five RBI. He brought in one RBI in the finale against St. Pete.
Morales, who has returned after an injury, is batting .295 with 13 hits and eight RBI. On the mound, he is 2-0 with a 5.06 ERA, one save, one walk and two strikeouts. He was 1-for-4 in the final against St. Pete.
Stefiuk earned his first win against in the third game against St. Pete where he threw a seven inning complete game with four strikeouts. The former Vanderbilt Commodore is currently 1-3 overall with a 5.20 ERA, one save, 15 walks and 29 strikeouts.
Hairston is batting .313 with 10 hits, one home run and three RBI, while at the plate he is 1-0 with a 6.57 ERA, five walks and 11 strikeouts. He went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in the finale against St. Pete.
Clucas is currently 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA, 10 walks and 15 strikeouts.
Blalock is batting .244 with 10 hits, three home runs and nine RBI.
Cockrill is batting .273 with 12 hits, one home run and nine RBI.
Scouting Hillsborough:
The Hawks are coming off being swept by Polk State by scores of 6-5, 5-3, 9-6 and 6-5 and are currently in last place in conference. Additionally, they enter the series on a eight-game losing streak dating back to February 3 against Indian River State.
Sophomore Jacob Griffith leads the way batting .380 with 41 hits, one home run and 20 RBI. He is currently on a 16-game hitting streak as of February 15.
Freshman Blake Williams leads the overall offense with the Hawks batting .206 with 21 hits, two home runs and 19 RBI.
On the mound, freshman Logan O'Leary leads the way going 2-3 with a 3.76 ERA, 10 walks and 31 strikeouts.
Series History:
The Manatees are 43-23 against the Hawks.
How to Keep Up:
Twitter - @SCFBaseball
No comments:
Post a Comment