"The pitching was good, the bats swung well and we played good defense," said head coach Tim Hill II. "When you do these things no matter who you play, you'll have a good result. It was nice to see the guys play well."
"It was good to have everyone compete and play," said freshman Gavyn Bowen.
"It's important that we stayed focused and that helped us win," said freshman Hayden Gustavson.
Hill II sent Bowen (1-0, 7.30 ERA) to start the game, while IMG head coach Ryan Ward went with Alex Gay.
The Manatees would open on the board first at the top of the first beginning with a one-out walk by sophomore Jalen Hairston before stealing. Freshman Allan Gil-Fernandez would then drive in Hairston with a double to right-center and then advance to third on a wild pitch before classmate Walker Vanecek would then drive Gil-Fernadez in with a sacrifice fly. After sophomore Luis Garrido hit a bunt single, Gustavson, who had not played the last three games, would send a two-run home run to right for his third of the season to make it 4-0 SCF.
At the top of the second, the Manatees would increase their lead further. After Almonte drew a one-out walk and stole second and third, Gil-Fernandez would drive him in with a single to center before Vanecek drove a double to deep left-center to bring in Gil-Fernandez to make it 6-0 SCF. One inning later, it would go to 7-0 after Hairston hit an RBI single to bring in sophomore LT Cockrill.
Meanwhile, Bowen remained steadfast on the mound as he held the Ascenders hitless for four innings before giving up his first hit in the bottom of the fifth. The Wisconsin native was able to prevent any runs from scoring after the fifth.
The Manatees would increase the lead to 8-0 at the top of the sixth after freshman Mario Trivella hit an RBI double to bring in Gustavson. In the bottom half of the inning, sophomore Trey Clucas would then come in and breeze through the inning.
At the top of the seventh, the Manatees would increase the lead to double digits. After Almonte (walk and two stolen bases), Hairston (walk and a stolen base) and Gil-Fernandez (hit by a pitch) loaded the bases, freshman Rex Smith, who came in to pinch hit for Vanecek would groundout and bring in Almonte before Gustavson sent a single to right to bring in Hairston and Gil-Fernandez and make it 11-0 SCF. In the bottom half of the inning, the Ascenders would get their first runs on the board as Riley Thuringer would hit a two-run homer to right. The Manatees would add their final run on the board as Hairston would send a single to right to bring in Almonte before sealing the victory.
Bowen would improve to 2-0 after throwing five scoreless inning with three hits and three strikeouts. Clucas would give up two unearned runs on two hits with five strikeouts in three innings of relief.
"It was good to see them throw strikes and they didn't walk anybody," said Hill II on Bowen and Clucas. "To not do that today was good to see."
Gay would get the loss after giving up seven runs on six hits with five walks and three strikeouts in two and two-thirds innings.
Three Manatees had a multi-hit game. It was Gustavson that lead the way in hitting and offense as he went 3-for-5 with a home run, four RBI and three runs scored.
"It was good to see him barrel some ball out," said Hill II on Gustavson.
Hairston (2-for-5) and Gil-Fernandez (2-for-4) rounded out the order with two hits and two RBI. Hairston added two runs, two walks and two stolen bases, while Gil-Fernadez added three runs and one walk.
Vanecek (1-for-3, two RBI), Garrido (1-for-3, one run), Trivella (1-for-3, one RBI, one run and two walks) and Cockrill (1-for-5, one run) had the remaining four hits, while Almonte (three runs, three walks and four stolen bases) also contributed in the game.
Thuringer lead the Ascenders in hitting and offense as he went 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBI.
Other Citrus Conference Scores:
Hillsborough (23-25, 9-18 Citrus) 10, Seminole State College of Florida (24-22, 11-16 Citrus) 2
#12 Florida Southwestern (31-16, 20-7) 7, TNXL Academy 10
Polk State (28-18, 16-11 Citrus) 12, South Florida State (22-24, 11-12 Sun Lakes) 6
Citrus Conference Standings:
1. #12 Florida Southwestern (31-15, 20-7)
2. RV Indian River State (31-11, 19-8)
3. Polk State (28-18, 16-11)
4. Miami Dade (24-21, 16-11)
5. Santa Fe (26-18, 15-12)
6. Central Florida (26-19, 14-13)
7. SCF (26-21, 13-14)
8. Eastern Florida State (21-22-1, 12-15)
9. Seminole State College of Florida (24-22, 11-16)
10. Hillsborough (23-25, 9-18)
11. St. Pete (16-26, 9-18)
12. Daytona State (16-23, 8-19)
Up Next:
The Manatees return to Citrus Conference play as they face Eastern Florida State (21-22-1, 12-15 Citrus) for their next three-game series. Game one will take place at Robert C. Wynn Field in Bradenton Thursday night, April 18 at 6 pm. Games two and three will take place at Bruce Bochy Field in Melbourne Saturday afternoon, April 20 at 1 and 3:30 pm.
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