WINTER HAVEN, Fla.- For the third-straight time, the No. 2 Southeastern University baseball team is heading back to Lewiston, Idaho for the Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series. The top-seeded Fire swept their way through the Opening Round Lakeland Bracket, going 3-0 with a dominant 18-4 World Series-clinching victory over the second-seeded Middle Georgia State University Knights on Wednesday evening.
"I thought the guys did a great job competing and finding ways to step up," shared SEU head coach
Adrian Dinkel. "I'm excited to see smiles on their faces after all the stressful moments we have dealt with throughout the year and we are grateful to be heading back to Idaho."
After falling behind 1-0 to the Knights through one inning of action, the Fire responded with three runs on three hits in the top of the third to take the lead 3-1 and never trail again for the remainder of the ballgame.
The Fire got three more across in the top of the third, starting off with a two-RBI double to deep right-center from senior
Colton Onstott, which scored
Sam Faith and
Nick Bottari. An RBI-single by senior
Carter Bridge to left field capped off the frame and grew the SEU advantage to 6-2.
In just his second start of the season, junior right-handed pitcher DJ Roberts delivered another gem. Roberts settled in after conceding two runs in the first two innings to sit down six-straight Knights from the bottom of the third through the bottom of the fifth. Roberts finished with 111 pitchers through eight innings, allowing three earned runs on seven hits, walking two, and striking out six.
A double down the left field line off the bat of Faith in the top of the seventh scored two of the Fire runs in the inning and put SEU up 11-2. Faith finished the game 3-6 at the plate with four runs batted in.
A seven-run top of the ninth was the exclamation point for Southeastern, as the Fire plated those runs on four hits and an error. Junior catcher
Shamir Morales belted his first home run of the season during the big inning.
Senior right-handed pitcher
Marc Soto secured SEU's spot in Lewiston with a clean bottom of the ninth in relief, ending the game with a strikeout.
The Fire now await the release of the bracket of the 2021 Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series, which will be held in Lewiston, Idaho May 28-June 4.
