No. 7 Saints Snap Losing Streak, Top Raiders 7-5 in Walk-off Fashion

After being swept by the No. 2 College of Central Florida, the No. 7 Santa Fe College Saints (36-7, 12-7) hoped to bounce back for a matchup with the Seminole State Raiders (24-22, 7-12). A back-and-forth game all afternoon, strong pitching from both sides took the game to extra innings. Ultimately, the Saints came out on top with a two-run walk-off home run from Josh Hogue. Santa Fe knocked off Seminole State 7-5 in 11 innings of play.

Hogue says "Let's Go Home!"

The lefty turned on a pitch in the 11th inning to lift No. 7 Santa Fe to the win over Seminole State! Rodriguez also homered, and Chase Chappell got the win on the mound with 5.1 scoreless innings in relief. #SicEmSaints pic.twitter.com/2LAg8x4JFd

— Santa Fe Saints (@santafesaints) April 19, 2023

Quiet on the Saints Front

The Raiders started swinging early. In the first inning, Carlos Lopez singled off of Santa Fe starting pitcher Tobin Moran. Kishon Fret put up a RBI double to drive in Lopez and give the Raiders an early 1-0 lead. Next up to bat, Jhoander Irigoyen doubled to score Fret, making it 2-0 Raiders.

The Saints started off in a quiet way offensively against Seminole State’s starting pitcher Tyler Van Dyke. Going three-and-out in the bottom of the first, the second inning proved to be no more productive. Zeth Rodriguez reached second base on a Raiders’ error. Other than that, the Saints remained hitless through the first three innings.

Rodriguez Evens the Score

Raider Ryan Recio started the fourth with a single. Increasing their lead to 3-0, Jacob Green doubled, scoring Recio. On a pitching change by Seminole State, Ryan Franklin entered the game to face the bulk of Santa Fe’s order. Franklin hit Hogue with a pitch and walked Jahlani Rogers to load the first and second bases. Rodriguez stepped up to the plate and evened the score with a three-run home run.

The Saints tacked on another run in the fifth after a triple from Hunter Keen and a RBI double from Hogue to score him. However, the Raiders answered quickly in the top of the sixth. After a pair of singles to start the inning, Cade Brewer scored on a fielder’s choice out at first, once again tying the score, which sat at 4-4. Jason Ambos hit a RBI single to gain the 5-4 lead for the Raiders. Coach Johnny Wiggs decided on a pitching change; Chase Chappell entered as a relief pitcher and recorded the final out in the inning.

Chappell Routs Raiders

Seminole State’s day was ruined when right-handed freshman Chase Chappell entered Wednesday’s game in the midst of the sixth inning. In his 5.1 innings of pitching, Chappell retired all but two batters he faced with only one hit allowed. The other batter reached base on an error by the Saints. Recording four three-and-out innings and four strikeouts, Chappell was named the winning pitcher, his third win of the season.

Walk-off Win

After the Saints evened the score at 5-5 with a RBI single from Grant Gallagher in the bottom of the eighth, solid relief pitching on both sides carried the game into extra innings. Uneventful ninth and tenth innings composed of only one hit on either side from the Raiders. Similarly, Seminole State went three-and-out in the top of the eleventh.

With one out already recorded, Corey Filley led the campaign for the win with a single in the bottom of the eleventh. However, the pinch runner for Filley, Jordan Perry, was picked off at first base for the second out of the inning. Keen reached first base on a Seminole State error. Then, Hogue slugged a two-run walk-off home run on a pitch from Blake D’Arville.

The Santa Fe Saints defeated the Seminole State Raiders, 7-5.

Up Next for the Saints

Santa Fe takes on Daytona State at home on Friday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. They then travel to Daytona State to play the Falcons on Saturday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. Still on the road, the Saints again play the Raiders this time at Seminole Sate at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.

You can find their season schedule here.