Travis Ozga Rallies FAU Past South Alabama

Friday, April 3

Boca Raton, Fla.

6:30 PM

Florida Atlantic

16-10, 0

South Alabama

11-16, 0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
South Alabama	1	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	5	10	2
Florida Atlantic	0	0	0	2	0	2	1	1	X	6	9	1

4/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

April 3, 2009

Final Stats

BOCA RATON, FL - Boca Raton's Travis Ozga homered and doubled en route to a 3-for-4 night as Florida Atlantic University rallied to beat the University of South Alabama 6-5. Ozga drove in two of FAU's six unanswered runs after the Owls fell behind 5-0 in the early innings. His hit-streak has now reached 18 games.

It was the opener of a three-game weekend set between the two Sun Belt Conference schools.

Florida Atlantic (16-10; 5-7 Sun Belt) improves to 13-6 at home.

South Alabama (11-16; 2-8 Sun Belt) jumped out in front with a run in the first inning and Sean Laird hit a three-run drive to left field in the third to give starter Miles Ethridge an early 4-0 cushion.

Ethridge pitched three scoreless innings before Nick Delguidice drove in Ozga with a double down the left field line in the fourth. Colby Gratton followed with a two-out double which scored DelGuidice and FAU trailed 5-2 after four complete.

Ozga hit a towering homer to lead off the FAU sixth, his third, in an inning that would end Ethridge's night and see the Owls tighten-up the game, 5-4.

Alex Pepe continued his effective mid-relief pitching, spelling sophomore starter Mike Gipson in the seventh after Gipson's pitch-count reached 109. Pepe pitched a flawless seventh to lower his ERA to a staff-best 2.41. Gipson struck out six and walked one.

It would be Ozga again picking up the Owls in the bottom of the seventh - hitting a two-out double into the left-field corner which scored Troy Bubley from first and tied the game 5-5.

Chris Schmitt (4-1) appeared in the top of the eighth and immediately retired the first three USA batters he faced, setting up an opportunity for FAU to take the lead in the bottom of the eighth. DelGuidice led off the inning with a single and would be moved to third when Anthony Mesa laid-down a squeeze bunt that plated the go-ahead run.

With FAU leading 6-5, Schmitt allowed a one-out single to Clint Reynolds in the ninth but would close out the inning and the game to give FAU the Friday night win.