No. 2 Patriots Complete Sweep of No. 7 Saints with 12-4 victory on Saturday

Heading into a four-game series with the No. 2 College of Central Florida Patriots (42-4, 15-4), the No. 7 Santa Fe Saints (35-7, 11-7) looked to widen their lead within the Mid-Florida Conference. However, the Patriots had other plans. The Patriots won the first three games of the series, two of which were close games and only decided by a one run difference. For the final game of the series, the Saints struggled both offensively and defensively while the Patriots showed off in an offensive blowout. Saturday’s matchup finished with a 12-4 win by the Patriots to secure their conference lead and an extension of the Saints’ losing streak.

No. 4 College of Central Florida Wins Final Game in the Week's Baseball Series, 12-4

Story: https://t.co/KxvPs7q3RC pic.twitter.com/TO6P7nMGXY

— Santa Fe Saints (@santafesaints) April 16, 2023

Even through Five

Saints’ starting pitcher Jacob Phillips came into Saturday’s game with a 5-0 record. Phillips gave up three hits and three runs in the first inning including a two-run home run by Juan Correa. The Saints responded with a RBI double from Jahlani Rogers to put themselves on the board against starting pitcher Brian Holiday as the Patriots led 3-1.

After a one-two-three second inning for the Patriots, the Saints gained momentum in the bottom of the second. Jacob Guthrie and Corey Filley started off the bottom of the second with singles. Guthrie and Filley stole second and third base, respectively. Then, on a single from Hunter Keen, Guthrie scored to narrow the Patriots’ lead 3-2. Rogers took first, and Filley scored on a passed ball to tie the score 3-3. The Saints took their first and only lead of the day when JP Herrholz doubled to drive in another run, making it 4-3.

The Patriots regained the lead in the top of the third with a two-run home run from Carson Bayne. The Saints did not score another run the rest of the day. With quiet fourth and fifth innings from both teams, the Patriots led 5-4 until the top of the sixth.

Breaking it Open

After a lead-off single, the Patriots’ Kainen Jorge hit a two-run home run to increase the lead to 7-4. Following two consecutive outs, Aaron Saltsman doubled, and John Marant RBI singled to score Saltsman. Phillips finished with 11 hits, 9 earned runs and only 3 strikeouts through 5.2 innings pitched. He was also handed his first loss of the season. With an 8-4 lead by the Patriots, the Saints’ coach Johnny Wiggs brought in relief pitcher Trey Bacon. Bacon gave up a single and walked Bayne to load the bases. Coach Wiggs made another pitching change to put Colby Rice in. After a walking a run in, Rice recorded the final out in the inning, not after the Patriots extended their lead to 9-4.

Sealing the W

Similar to the bottoms of the fourth and fifth innings, the Saints went three-and-out in the sixth with all of their batters striking out. In the top of the seventh, Rice walked two batters. Then, Nick Davidson came into the game on a pitching change with runners on first and second. Davidson gave up a three-run home run to Marant, giving the Patriots a 12-4 lead.

The Saints could not answer, and the game ended after seven innings.

Playoff Implications

The recent sweep of the Saints by the Patriots resulted in the Patriots taking the lead of the Mid-Florida Conference. In addition, the new NJCAA D1 Baseball Rankings were released for the week of April 17th. The formerly No. 3 Saints dropped four spots to No. 7 while the Patriots moved up two spots to No. 2.

Looking Ahead

The Saints hope to get back on track this week with two two-game series against Seminole State and Daytona State. They play Seminole State on Wednesday at 3 p.m. at home. Then, they take on Daytona state at home on Friday at 3 p.m. and away at 1 p.m. on Wednesday. They finish up the week at Seminole State at 2 p.m. on Sunday.

You can find their season schedule here.