The College of St. Joseph Baseball team had a busy week in Florida, playing in seven games over a five-day span. It was a challenging road trip, as they faced some of the best teams the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics has to offer. The Fighting Saints went 1-6, earning the lone victory in their last game against Florida Memorial University on Friday. CSJ is now 6-12 on the season and looking to get back to their winning ways as they head closer to home for the remainder of the season.
Here is a look at how the past week unfolded.
March 6
CSJ Baseball started their Florida trip with a 13-1 loss against the St. Thomas University Bobcats on Monday. Russell Krebs got the start on the hill for the Saints and was credited with the loss after giving up nine earned runs in 3 ⅔ innings pitched. The Bobcats enforced their will early and often in the ballgame.
March 7
The Saints began Tuesday with a 14-2 loss to the Keiser University Seahawks. Nicholas Burch was named the starting pitcher for the Saints against the Seahawks and he had a solid first inning, giving up just one hit and allowing no runs. The turning point in the game came soon after in the second inning, when Keiser was able to put together five runs on just two hits and break the game open.
CSJ followed with a 10-0 shutout loss in a rematch game against St. Thomas. Ryan Cummings got the starting nod on the hill for the Saints against St. Thomas. His day did not last long, as the Bobcats were able to put together six runs on six hits in the very first inning.
March 8
The Fighting Saints squandered a seven-run lead in the ninth inning to lose to the Ave Maria University Gyrenes on Wednesday. CSJ dominated the game until the final inning, in which the Gyrenes were able to put together eight runs on seven hits leading to the unbelievable comeback victory.
March 9
The Saints suffered their worst loss of the season after being defeated 18-1 by the Keiser Seahawks on Thursday. They gave up 16 hits, including seven extra-base hits. CSJ used five different pitchers throughout the game but none of them had an answer for the hot bats of the Seahawks.
March 10
CSJ fell to the Florida Memorial University Lions 3-2 in the first of two games on Friday. Nick Powers pitched well for the Saints, giving up just two runs in six innings, but the bats never came alive for CSJ.
Finally, the Saints were able to come away with a 3-1 victory over the Lions in their last game of the Florida trip. Derek Sanderson was credited with the win for CSJ and Ben Brown got the save. The Saints only had four total hits, but were able to take advantage on the base-paths, scoring three.