LAKELAND, Fla.—The top home run hitting team in the NAIA added 12 more to its total during its first 15 innings of Sun Conference play to sweep their doubleheader with No. 6 Webber International.
SEU (29-1) posted a 17-7 win in eight innings followed by a 15-2 win in seven innings to take its first two conference wins of the year.
After conceding a two-run homer in the first inning of the first game, the Fire answered with two-run homers by
Adonys Herrera and
Gary Lora to take a 4-2 lead to the second.
Nicholas Block hit his first of four homers on the day with a solo shot in the second, which was followed immediately by a
Josh Pigozzo homer.
Chayce Bryant hit a two-run homer for the third home run of the second inning to give the Fire an 8-2 lead heading to the third.
Webber International added a two-out run in the third on an infield single with the bases loaded. In the fifth,
Nick Winkelmeyer doubled to left field to score Lora. Block hit a three-run homer in the next at bat to push the lead to 12-3. Herrera's single through the left side pushed the lead to 10, scoring Pigozzo.
The Warriors picked up a run in the sixth which was answered by an RBI single by Block in the bottom of the inning to make it 14-4. Webber scored three in the seventh to get the deficit back to seven.
Hits by
Adrian Mella and Lora to lead off the eighth set up
Stephen Cullen's game-ending homer to left for his team-leading 11
th of the season.
Block finished 4-for-4 with 5 RBIs to lead a group of four players with four hits apiece. Herrera, Lora, and Cullen all were 4-for-5.
Robb Adams improved to 3-0 on the season with four strikeouts over 5.1 innings of work.
Lora added three more hits in the second game, driving in Pigozzo with an RBI single to left in the bottom of the first. His solo homer in the third match Cullen for the team lead with his 11
th of the season.
Block also continued to swing a hot bat, going 2-for-4 with a two-run homer in the second and a three-run homer in the sixth.
Darien Smith was dominant on the hill, striking out every Warrior with a plate appearance at least once for a season-high 14 strikeouts in a complete game victory. Smith threw 119 pitches to go the distance and allowed just two runs on four hits with three walks.
Isaac Nunez added a 2-for-3 effort with a home run in the second game.
Pablo Lanzarote added a grand slam to straight away center field in the sixth which gave the Fire a 10-run advantage.
Pigozzo and Winkelmeyer added two hits each.
The series will conclude Saturday at noon.
