MELBOURNE, Fla. – Florida Tech baseball ushered in its final non-conference opponent of the season as the Panthers squared off with No. 16 Georgia College at Andy Seminick – Les Hall field for a weekend series. FIT fought hard throughout Friday's doubleheader but big innings late in each game ultimately led to the Bobcats grabbing the win in both contests.
 
Zac Orchard led the Panther offense going 3-for-6 in the two games with a walk. Five different members of the team batted in a run over the doubleheader.
 
Game one saw the Panthers' ace Ty Cohen hit the mound first against the Bobcats. He lasted six innings during which he surrendered four runs and 10 hits while striking out five.
 
Justin Barney was tasked with closing out the game for FIT as he tossed three frames and allowed five runs on nine hits and sent two back to the dugout.
 
A sacrifice fly by James Gronberg kicked off the scoring in the bottom of the third as he gave Raul Quintero enough time to cross the plate. In the next at-bat, Dan Szpik sent a shot down the right-field line that scored Gronberg. This gave the Crimson and Gray a 2-0 lead as they headed into the fourth.
 
The Bobcats responded in the next frame, cutting the lead in half before stranding a runner on second base.
 
FIT extended its lead back to two when Quintero hit a single into left field that allowed Zac Orchard to trot across the plate in the bottom of the fourth.
 
A run in the top of the sixth by GC's Logan Mattix brought the score to 3-2. The Bobcats then tied the score at 3-3 in the very next at-bat. A third run gave the Bobcats their first lead of the evening, 4-3.
 
The Bobcats pushed their lead to two in the top of the seventh as they scored off a Brendan Holler single. A four-run top of the ninth gave GC a 9-3 lead as they closed out the first game of the night.
 
Junior Rhett Willis was tasked with opening game two. During his appearance on the rubber he put in five innings of work and gave up only two runs, one earned, and two hits. Willis also retired four of 16 batters on strikes.
 
Jordan Murray made a short appearance for the Panthers, tallying two outs, one on strikes, while allowing three runs, one earned, and four hits.
 
Matt DiNenna was the next Panther out of the bullpen. DiNenna pitched three innings and blanked the Bobcats in both runs and hits. He gave way to Matt Coles, who earned the final out in the top of the ninth for the Crimson and Gray.
 
Florida Tech got on the board in game two first thanks to a bases-loaded walk that scored Szpik. The next at-bat saw Vincenzo Catanza belt a ball to deep right field in a sacrifice effort that sent Kevin Capella home.
 
The game then turned into a defensive struggle until the top of the sixth when the Bobcats put up five runs to take the lead, 5-2. A missed tag at home gave Georgia College a four-run lead in the top of the ninth.
 
The Panthers will look to end the weekend series on a high note as they play game three of the series against Georgia College on Saturday, Mar. 31, at 12 p.m. at Andy Seminick – Les Hall Field.