Eighth-Inning Comeback Propels Baseball Over Blue Hens, 6-3

Sunday, February 25

Boca Raton, Fla.

12:00 PM

Florida Atlantic

6-1

Delaware

2-4

Delaware

Florida Atlantic

2/25/2018 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

Feb. 25, 2018

Box Score

BOCA RATON, Fla. - In order to complete the weekend sweep for the second week in the row, it again took Florida Atlantic University baseball until their final at-bat, with the Owls pushing three runs across - all with two outs - in the bottom of the eighth on Sunday to win their third straight over Delaware, 6-3.

Quotable

"For some reason, we were a little discombobulated at the beginning," said Head Coach John McCormack. "That guy they threw was really good, and we were fortunate that he had a pitch count, and then I thought we did a really nice job. I thought we had some really good at-bats, (and the) relief pitching was good."

The Turning Point

Trailing 3-0, the Owls (6-1) got two unearned runs with two outs in the fifth. Diamond Johnson reached on an error, moved to second on a single by Tyler Frank, and scored on a Joe Montes single up the middle. Two innings later, an error once again bit UD (2-4), with Johnson the recipient as the leadoff hitter. Frank then singled again, and three batters later, and a Pedro Pages sacrifice fly tied the game.

The Finish

With one out in the home eighth, Gunnar Lambert singled, and pinch-hitter Andru Summerall drew a walk. An intentional walk to Frank loaded the bases with two outs, and a passed ball allowed Lambert to score the go-ahead run. Montes provided the cushion with another hard-hit single back up the box, plating two, for the final margin. In the top of the ninth, the first two batters reached against FAU closer Zach Schneider, but the junior righthander buckled down for retire the next three in order for the save.

The Bats

Pages notched his fourth consecutive two-hit game, with a single and a double. He hit .545 in the three-game set
For Frank, it was his second straight multi-hit effort, going 2-for-3 along with a walk and three runs scored out of the leadoff slot (the most by an Owl this season)
Montes' three RBI is also the most by an FAU individual in 2018, and the first three of his Owls' career
Three-hole hitter David Miranda reached on three walks Sunday. The first four batters in the FAU lineup were a combined 6-for-14 with four walks, four RBI and three runs scored

The Arms

Vince Coletti drew the start and gave up two runs in four innings, striking out a season-high six
Marc Stewart had an important relief stint, closing out the fifth and pitching into the seventh. The senior righty had a perfect sixth inning and retired the first four batters he faced
Weston Clemente got two outs in the sixth, and Drew Peden, who earned the win, closed out that frame, before notching a 1-2-3 eighth
Schneider, now 3-for-3 in save opportunities, walked two batters, but got a strikeout and flyout to seal the sweep
The six Owls' pitchers all had at least one strikeout and combined for 13 Sunday. In the series, FAU arms had 42 strikeouts and issued just six walks, pitching to a 1.67 ERA and holding UD hitters to a .128 batting average

What's Next

The Owls host Miami for a midweek matchup, this Wednesday night. Nick Prather will draw the start for FAU, with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. at FAU Baseball Stadium.