LONGWOOD, Fla. – Florida Tech softball returned to action on Friday afternoon for the 2024 Panther Invitational, beginning the three-day event with matchups against Bentley and Auburn-Montgomery. Timely pitching was the theme of the day as the Panthers worked themselves out of late jams in both games to record victories over Bentley, 5-3, and Auburn-Montgomery, 2-1.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
 
GAME ONE:
Final: Florida Tech 5, Bentley 3
Records: Florida Tech (3-2, 0-0 SSC) | Bentley (0-1, 0-0 NE10)
Location: Soldiers Creek Park | Longwood, Fla.  


STATS OF THE GAME:

• The Falcons broke the ice in the top of the second against Ella Niles. Jess Morrison reached on a fielder's choice with one out and after stealing second, came around to score on a Sabrina Grizzaffi single up the middle.
• Niles limited the damage to just that one run by retiring the next two batters.
• Florida Tech were able to get that run back an inning later, which was kickstarted by Celeste Casillas' one-out triple to center. Niles would help her own cause by driving in Casillas with an infield single to tie the game.
• Niles swiped her second base of the season but Falcons pitcher Payton Doiron retired the next two hitters she faced to end the Tech rally.
• The Panthers broke the game open in the bottom of the fourth as they loaded the bases thanks to three consecutive walks to Miranda Schwartz, Mya Ogbodiewgu and Kathryn Sexton set the stage for Casillas.
• Her double combined with a fielding error on the relay throw cleared the bases and Casillas herself would come around to score when Niles singled to left to make it 5-1 in favor of the Crimson and Gray.
• Bentley did not go quietly as their first two batters in the top of the fifth reached base and after Niles induced a flyout for the first out of the inning, she would be lifted for Lexi Lueger.
• After walking her first batter, Lueger was able to induce a force out at the plate but before Jordan Krause's single to left drove in two runs to halve the Panther lead.
• Lueger was able to end the Falcon threat there as Kim Saunders grounded out to end the inning.
• Alex Hendrian was brought in for the final two innings and retired six of the seven batters she faced to record her seventh career save.
• Niles allowed two runs on three hits over 4.1 innings of work to record the first win of her career while also going two-for-four at the plate. She becomes the first Panther to record a win and multiple hits in the same game since Hendrian did so against Tampa on February 26, 2022.

 
GAME TWO:
Final: Florida Tech 2, RV Auburn-Montgomery 1
Records: Florida Tech (4-2, 0-0 SSC) | RV Auburn-Montgomery (4-2, 0-0 GSC)
Location: Soldiers Creek Park | Longwood, Fla.  


STATS OF THE GAME:

• The Warhawks took the early lead as Chloe Baynes reached on a leadoff single against Hendrian to begin the game. After a failed bunt attempt, Molly Cobb's infield single led to an error that put runners at second and third for Kat Fallen.
• Fallen's groundout to second brought Baynes home and put AUM on top. Hendrian limited the damage to just that one run as she induced a flyout off the bat of Gia Martin to end the inning.
• Tech responded in the bottom of the third, which was kickstarted by a leadoff single from Niles.
• Niles moved to second on a Kelly McLaughlin sacrifice bunt and then to third on a Jolie Miracle single. Katie Hogue's single to left brought Niles home to tie the game.
• After Schwartz was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Ogbodiewgu's sacrifice fly brought home Miracle to put the Crimson and Gray in front.
• AUM's last chance came in the top of the seventh, when Rebcca Komers led off with a single. Cobb followed with a fly ball to left that Sexton tracked down and alertly doubled off Komers at first. After hitting Fallen, Hendrian coaxed a grounder to second from Martin to end it for her third complete game of the season.
• The junior right-hander dealt well with pressure all day, stranding 10 Warhawk runners, including two in every inning between the second and fifth innings.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• The Panthers now lead the all-time series against Bentley 3-0. This was the first meeting between the teams since February 13, 2022 at that season's Panther Invitational in Cocoa.
• Florida Tech now leads the all-time series with Auburn-Montgomery 2-1. This is the second consecutive season in which the two teams met at the Panther Invitational in Longwood.
• Katie Hogue went one-for-three in both games, bringing her average on the season to .333 and extending her hitting streak to four games.
• Miranda Schwartz went two-for-four over the course of the two games and is now hitting .363 over the past four games.
• Mya Ogbodiewgu has driven in a run in three of the past four games.

 
UP NEXT: The Panther Invitational continues for Florida Tech on Saturday with another pair of games. Tech will take on Chadron State at 11 A.M., followed by a matchup with Saint Anselm at 4 P.M.
 
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