LAKELAND, Fla.—You could tell Southeastern was excited to get the 2024 baseball season underway.
The No. 1 Fire got a stellar start from pitcher
Darien Smith and a 4-for-4 day from outfielder
Josh Pigozzo to cruise to a 15-0 win in seven innings over Ottawa (Kan.).
Smith struck out three of the first four hitters he saw and finished with eight over four innings of work to pick up the win. He also worked a 1-2-3 second and allowed a two-out single to center in the third, but the runner was thrown out by Pigozzo at second trying to turn it into a double.
Pigozzo wasted no time getting the Fire going, hitting a homer to the right field corner for a 1-0 lead. He also blasted a ball over the left field wall to lead off the third and kicked off a 10-run inning which saw SEU send 14 to the plate.
"They did an unbelievable job today," said coach
Adrian Dinkel. "The tempo and the tone got set early today when Darien punches out three and Pigozzo hits an opposite field homer. I think they answered the call and I'm happy to see where they're at."
Chayce Bryant picked up an RBI single to left with the bases loaded in the third and
Pablo Lanzarote followed with a two-run double to left to push the lead to five.
Tommy Davis hit a bases-loaded double down the left field line to give the Fire an 8-0 lead. Pigozzo picked up another RBI that inning with a single to left to score Davis.
Landrey Wilkerson's two run homer to right put the Fire up 11-0.
Despite the long break, Smith picked up where he left off, coaxing a foul out and a pair of strikeouts to end his day.
"If our offense is going to do that every game, I'm fine with it," said Smith. "The focus was to pound the zone, stay ahead and be smooth and in a rhythm."
Davis tallied his second RBI of the day on a fielder's choice in the fourth and scored on a throwing error after he stole third.
Josh Smith's double to left in the fifth scored
Isaac Nunez to make it 14-0 and
Gary Lora's RBI ground out brought home
Matt Delay in the sixth to finish the day 2-for-2 with a pair of walks.
Pigozzo finished the day with three RBIs and three runs scored.
"He's a good baseball player and showed it today," said Dinkel of Pigozzo. "I said it before that I thought last year he might have been our best player, he just hit a lot of balls right at people and today they happened to fall."
Agnel Miranda,
Jake Cohen, and
Bryce McDonald all worked a scoreless inning in relief for the Fire. McDonald struck out two of the three he faced.
The teams will meet again tomorrow at 3 p.m.
