LAKELAND, Fla. – On a day where 18 seniors were honored with their families and friends, the No. 11 Southeastern University baseball team swept a doubleheader versus the No. 15 Webber International University Warriors. The Fire earned the game one victory 6-3 before clinching the series with a 9-4 win in game two.
"I am extremely happy that we were able to honor our seniors with two wins. It was great to see them go out for the final time on this field as winners," shared Head Coach
Adrian Dinkel.
SEU finished 18-6 in Sun Conference play this season, which is the top TSC win percentage in program history.
The Fire attacked first in game one. Senior catcher
Gerald Ceballos launched a towering shot over the center field fence off the first pitch he saw in the bottom of the second. The home run was his team leading 12
th of the season and gave the Fire a 1-0 lead.
SEU ushered in two more runs in the bottom of the third via RBI singles from senior first baseman
Mike D'Acunti and Ceballos to take a 3-0 lead over Webber.
The Warriors retaliated in the top of the fourth with a two run homer by designated hitter Connor Clayton.
After surrendering the blast, senior southpaw
Kade Wagner settled in, retiring 12 straight Webber batters.
Wagner hurled his first complete game of the season in the game one victory, striking out nine Warriors on 116 pitches.
A solo home run in the bottom of the sixth by senior infielder
Luis Diaz and an RBI triple by senior infielder
Angel Garced provided key insurance runs for the Fire.
SEU trailed Webber 2-0 going into the bottom of the third in game two. An RBI single by Diaz put the Fire on the board in the bottom half of the frame.
However, it was a three run blast over the right field fence by junior utility man
Kainalu Pitoy later that inning that beckoned the fans to their feet and put the Fire up 4-2.
D'Acunti belted his 12
th home run of the season in the bottom of the 7
th, which tied the team lead in long balls. The dinger came at a pivotal time, as the Warriors had just trimmed the SEU lead to 5-4 in the top of the frame.
RBI base hits by
De'John Suber, Diaz, and D'Acunti padded on three more runs to the Southeastern advantage in the bottom of the 8
th.
SEU became the first team in the NAIA this season to hit the 42 win mark with the game two triumph.
The Fire will conclude the 2017 regular season with a trip to Jacksonville to take on the Edward Waters College Tigers in a doubleheader next Wednesday. Game times are set for 3:00 and 6:00 p.m.
