Box Score MELBOURNE Florida Tech's first home game under the lights almost turned into a night of extra-inning baseball, but Panthers second baseman K.C. Clabough ended it just short of that outcome. Clabough's bases-loaded single with one out in the bottom of the ninth knocked in the winning run, and lifted the Panthers to a 5-4 win over the Moccasins.
Saturday marked the first night game at Andy Seminick-Les Hall field, and the way starting pitchers Gus Schlosser and Jonathan Cornelius were pitching early on, it looked like the lights might not be needed. The first 4½ innings were played in barely an hour, with Florida Tech leading 2-0, before the teams combined for seven runs after that. The last one came in walk-off fashion.
Tyler Doughty greeted Moccasin reliever Jake Guengerich with a single to center and John Fouchet bunted him into scoring position. After back-to-back walks loaded the bases, Clabough singled up the middle to bring in Doughty with the winning run. It was Clabough's fourth hit and second RBI of the game to go along with two stolen bases as well.
The Panthers (30-18, 11-11 Sunshine State Conference) got on the board first with two runs in the bottom of the first inning when they put four of their first five hitters on base. Schlosser hit leadoff batter Chris Fox in the foot to give the Panthers their first runner and Clabough followed with a double just inside the bag at third. A walk to Jose Vazquez loaded the bases before a fly ball by Ryan McChesney brought in Fox for the first run of the game. After a double steal put runners at second and third, Josh Hinkle made it 2-0 with a single into left that plated Clabough.
Schlosser faced the minimum nine batters over the next three innings with the help of a caught stealing in the third and a 1-6-3 double play in the fourth, but Florida Tech used a squeeze play to score again in the bottom of the fifth. The two-out bunt by Clabough was good enough to score the run without a play at either home plate or first base.
Trailing 3-0, the Moccasins (27-15, 11-8) rallied to tie the game with three in the top of the sixth, all of them coming with two out. The Mocs had loaded the bases on singles by Cory Jensen, Kelvin Clark and Mike Snyder, and their first two runs crossed the plate on back-to-back walks by Tony Mitchell and Tyler Benzel. It looked like Cornelius would get out of the inning without further damage when he got Colin Kish to ground out to second, but Clabough short-armed the throw to first, allowing Snyder to score the tying run.
After Florida Tech scored in the bottom of the sixth to take a 4-3, Florida Southern came back to tie the game for a second time with a run in the top of the seventh. Clark, who went 3-for-4 in the game, drove in this one with a double after Austin Chubb had singled leading off the inning.
Cornelius held the Mocs without a hit the rest of the way, improving to 8-1 with the complete game effort. He gave up three earned runs on seven hits, struck out 10 and walked three. The senior who was making the final start of his career, retired the first 10 Moccasin batters of the game before Colin Kaline singled with one out in the fourth.
Schlosser got a no-decision, surrendering four runs on nine hits in eight innings, striking out seven and walking one.
Florida Southern and Florida Tech complete their 3-game series on Sunday with a doubleheader beginning at noon.
