SAN ANGELO, Texas – Capping off the first day of the ASU George
McCorkle Challenge, Florida Tech (2-2) ended the Friday outing, splitting with Adams State University (2-5) and dropping to No. 2 Angelo State (7-1).
In the first match up against Adams State, FIT rolled past the Grizzles with an overwhelming, 8-0 score to mark the team's first run-rule contest of the 2018 season. During the second game of the day, the Panthers dropped a 4-0 decision to the No. 2 Rams, and closed the night with a 4-0 loss to Adams State in Game 3.
In the circle, McKenzie
Krutsinger (1-0) earned her first win, pitching four innings to only allow four hits. Junior
Melanie Murphy (1-1) suffered her first loss against the Rams, striking out three and allowing five hits in six innings pitched.
Leading the Panthers offense,
Mikayla Wessel went 5-for-8 at the plate, tallying two RBI and one triple. Veteran
Jessica Callahan blasted her first
dinger of the season, ending the day with a 2-for-5 performance in the box.
Melinda Rule,
Shanysse Emerenciana and
Ally Carver ended the first day of the tournament with one RBI apiece.
Hitting home first, FIT clutched three runs in the second to take an early 3-0 lead over the Grizzlies, while repeating themselves in the fourth with an additional four runs. In the fifth, the Panthers pitching staff of
Krutsinger and
Alaina Perry,
shut down the Grizzlies offense, allowing FIT to walk away by run-rule, 8-0.
Moving into the second event of the day, Florida Tech struggled to breach the score against the Rams, as the Melbourne lineup collected six hits and no runs against the National Runner-up. Although Murphy hosted a spectacular performance on the mound, her six scoreless innings would not be enough to withstand ASU's deep lineup. Unfortunately, the Rams took the lead in the fifth with two runs, and increased it in the sixth to close the game, 4-0.
In the final game against Adams State, both teams went blank for three straight innings, until the Grizzles posted the first run of the game in the top of the third. After two more scoreless frames, Adams State increased its margin in the top of the sixth, pushing in three more runs to move ahead of FIT, 4-0. In the seventh, the Panthers loaded the bases with three hits, but the Grizzles quickly ceased the Crimson and Gray offensive efforts to wrap up the win, 4-0.
Tomorrow, Florida Tech will return to Mayer Field for a double header against No. 2 Angelo State at 12 p.m. CT, and Texas A&M – International at 4:15 p.m. CT.
For live coverage of the events, fans can visit FloridaTechSport.com!
