MARIANNA, FL – Wanting to end the weekend on a high, No. 5 Walters State needed a spark down a run in their final game on Saturday against No. 3 San Jacinto.
Jack Sutton delivered.
Sutton belted a 3-run home run in the bottom of the fifth to give Walters State a two-run lead against the Gators, a lead that held up as Walters State won 5-2. The Senators got revenge on a Friday loss to Chipola earlier in the day on Saturday, winning 10-7.
With the sweep, Walters State moves to 9-1 on the season.
Game One: Walters State 10, Chipola 7
The Senators scored five runs in the second inning in game one of the day and held on for a 10-7 win over host Chipola.
It was Colby Backus leading the way once again for the Senators as he homered in the second inning and had two hits and three RBIs. Noah Gent also had two hits in the game, including a solo home run, while Kruise Newman hit a 2-run home run to get the scoring started for Walters State.
On the mound, Wesley Scott got the start and picked up his second win of the season. Scott threw four innings, striking out eight while allowing four runs on five hits.
Luke Ferguson replaced Scott in the fifth and threw 2.2 innings, allowing three runs while striking four. Ferguson was replaced by Landon Crumbley with two outs in the seventh with the tying run at the plate. Crumbley shut the door with a strikeout to secure the win and pick up his first save of the season.
After a scoreless first, Newman got the scoring going when he belted a 2-run home run after Nick Block walked to start the inning. Sutton then reached first on an error and Caleb McNeely walked to bring up Backus with two outs. Backus wasted no time, belting a 3-run homer over the fence in left to make it 5-0.
In the third, Walters State manufactured a two-out run when Dalton McLain walked, stole second and advanced all the way to the plate after a throwing error by the catcher. That made the score 6-1.
After Chipola cut the lead to three in the bottom of the third, Gent got one of the runs back in the top of the fourth, hitting a solo homer over the fence in center.
The fifth inning saw the Senators continue to score. Block and Newman led off the inning with walks before McLain bunted for a single, scoring Block in the process on an error on the throw.
McLain was at it again in the top of the sixth as he singled home a run with two outs to make it 9-4. The scoring concluded in the seventh for the Senators when Landon Slemp hit a sacrifice fly to score Sutton after Sutton doubled into the gap to start the inning.
Game Two: Walters State 5, San Jacinto 2
In game two, Walters State got a good start from Kohl Drake and a great relief appearance from Jake Knapp as they ended the weekend with a bang.
Drake got the start and threw 3.2 innings, striking out six while allowing two runs on a bloop single.
Knapp replaced him with two outs in the fourth and got out of a jam. Knapp pitched the remainder of the game, striking out three while allowing no runs and picking up his third win of the season.
Drake and Knapp had help from their defense too as Block came up big twice in right field. First, in the top of the second Block caught out number two in right and gunned down a runner at home to keep the game scoreless. Then, in the fifth, Block caught a ball in right and doubled up a runner at first to get out of the inning.
Offensively, Walters State struggled to bring home runners in scoring position before Sutton's blast in the fifth.
Down 2-0 in the bottom of the third, the Senators loaded the bases with no outs after McNeely singled and Backus and Gent walked. Shaw would then score a run on a walk, but that was the only run they would get.
The game would remain 2-1 in favor of the Gators until Sutton's blast in the fifth. The two runners on base were Block, who reached on a single, and Newman, who walked.
The Senators would add one more insurance run in the bottom of the sixth when Shaw singled in Gent after Gent singled up the middle.
In the top of the seventh, Knapp shut the door with a 1-2-3 inning.
Up Next:
Walters State will be back in action at home against Rend Lake College next weekend. The Senators will play doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. First pitch for Saturday is set for 2 p.m.
Rob Harvey
Walters State Community College
Sports Information Director
Cell: (423) 779-8880
Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu
Website: www.ws.edu/athletics