MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Florida Tech baseball team totaled 15 hits and scored in six out of seven innings as the Panthers smashed their way to victory on Saturday afternoon, 19-9, over the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Florida Tech 19, Minnesota-Duluth 9
Records: Florida Tech (10-8, 3-3 SSC), Minnesota-Duluth (5-6, 2-2 NSIC)
Location: Andy-Seminick-Les Hall Field| Melbourne, Fla.
 
STATS OF THE GAME:

• After a scoreless first inning, UMD struck first in the top of the second. An RBI double from Nathan Rosenberg put the Bulldogs up 1-0.
• A walk and a bunt single loaded the bases for UMD's Michael Gabbard who sent a grand slam just over the left field fence to make it a 5-0 game.
• Tech began to chip away at the lead right away in the bottom half of the frame. Brett Kelly led off the inning with a single and later came around to score on an RBI single by Noah Burke.
• Jason Blackstone followed suit in the next at-bat with a double into the left-center gap to bring around N. Burke and cut the lead to 5-2.
• With two outs, Jack Matousek singled home Blackstone to make it a 5-3 game.
• Panther starting pitcher Danny Vassallo settled in and retired UMD in order in the top of the third.
• With two outs in the bottom of the third, N. Burke doubled into right field to send Kelly across the plate to chip the lead down to 5-4.
• The Bulldogs got a run back in the top of the fourth with an RBI single.
• Three straight singles from Gabe Garrett, Matousek, and Marshall Burke to begin the bottom of the fourth made it a 6-5 game after Garrett scored on M. Burke's base knock.
• With runners on second and third, Carlos Guzman sent a deep sacrifice fly to right field to bring home Matousek and knot the game at 6-6.
• In the next Panther at-bat, Roman Samson singled home M. Burke to take a 7-6 lead.
• In the bottom of the fifth, Tech tacked on two more runs on an M. Burke bases-loaded walk and an RBI fielder's choice.
• Tyler Vermillion tossed his second scoreless inning in relief in the top of the sixth. The final out of the inning was recorded on a tremendous catch against the left field wall by N. Burke.
• In the bottom half of the same inning, a Blackstone single, a Matousek RBI ground out, and an M. Burke double added four more runs for Tech to extend the lead to 13-6.
• UMD battled back in the top of the seventh with three runs to cut the Panthers' lead to 13-9.
• In the bottom of the seventh, a bases-loaded walk for N. Burke made it 14-9. A wild pitch and an RBI ground out extended the lead to 16-9.
• M. Burke continued to stay hot at the plate and sent a single up to the middle to bring around Gavin McGowan and Blackstone to give Tech an 18-9 lead.
• Two batters later, another bases load walk brought in the Panthers' 19th run of the game to secure the 19-9 run-rule win.

 
NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Marshall Burke finished the day 4-for-5 with a double and six RBIs.
• Noah Burke went 2-for-2 with three walks, a double, three RBIs, and four runs scored.
• Jack Matousek went 2-for-4 with three walks, three RBIs, and two runs scored.
• Jason Blackstone went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and four runs scored.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• Florida Tech moves to 2-0 all-time against Minnesota-Duluth. The Panthers won the first meeting, 11-1, in Lakeland, Fla. on March 17, 2010.
• Carlos Guzman has now recorded at least one RBI in his last four games.
• Brett Kelly has recorded a hit in seven straight games played.
• Gabe Garrett is on a four-game hitting streak.

 
UP NEXT: Florida Tech will travel up I-95 to Viera, Fla. to take on Purdue Northwest for a doubleheader in the stadium at the USSSA Space Coast Complex. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
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