Mocs Shutout In Game Three of West Florida Series

PENSACOLA â€" 32nd-ranked Florida Southern (0-3) put bat to ball but the stingy 16th-ranked West Florida (3-0) defense stifled any type of momentum the Moccasins would build in the final contest of the three game series here at Jim Spooner field Sunday afternoon, as the Argos completed the sweep over the Mocs with a 6-0 win.

Much like Saturday’s games, the Argos, who won its 1,000th all-time baseball game, used a two-out rally to get on the board first and would add four more insurance runs later in the game to put away the Mocs and earn its second straight sweep over FSC. UWF won three games over the Mocs last season in Lakeland.

Starting pitcher Clay Chapman (Orlando, Fla.) was stellar early for the Mocs, giving up no hits and fanning two Argos through the first three innings. The only UWF players to reach base those first three innings got there on two early fielding errors by the Mocs. 

But once again a two-out fourth inning rally hurt the Mocs as Chapman gave up a walk and a single to the first two batters he faced in the fourth. However, he would strike out the next two batters en-route to hopefully getting out of the jam. Back-to-back singles and a hits batsman allowed the Argos to score two runs and get on the scoreboard first.

Earlier in the inning, in the top of the fourth, the Mocs were the first team on the day to really threaten as they got runners on the corners with two outs. The Mocs seemed like they might strike first as catcher Brad Carlton (Arcadia, Fla.) hit a hard grounder to the third-baseman, who at first had trouble fielding the ball. His throw was a little high pulling the first baseman off the bag simultaneously with Carlton reaching first. But the umpire said the Argos’ first baseman had control of the throw and was able to touch first before Carlton touched the bag.

The Argos would add their first two insurance runs the next inning as Dustin Saulmon led off the inning getting hit by a pitch. He made it around to home right before designated-hitter Austin Southall hit a high fly ball to left that barely carried over the leftfield wall for a solo homerun. The Argo’s plated their final two runs in the bottom of the seventh.

FSC’s last threat came in the eighth inning with two outs as the Argo pitcher walked back-to-back Moccasins. With runners on first and second, T.J. Kuban could plate at least one run with a single. Hitting from a full count, Kuban was able to send a hard line-drive towards second. At first it looked like the hit would get over the second-baseman’s head but the Argo defender jumped and snagged the line-drive for the third out of the inning. 

During six innings of work, Chapman struck out five batters and gave up five hits. He was saddled with four earned runs and the loss. Cameron Grimsley (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) and Nate Carter (Boca Raton, Fla.) both came in for one innings as relief for the Mocs. Grimsley gave up two hits and two earned runs while Carter struck out two with one hit given up.

Like game one of the series first baseman Kyle Jackson (Avon Park, Fla.) led FSC offensively going two-for-four. The Mocs finished with six hits and stranded eight runners in the game. 

Senior Kyle Gibbs (Sarasota, Fla.) and sophomore Keith Curcio (Sarasota, Fla.) extended their hitting streak to six games, each getting a hit in all three games of the 2012-13 opening series and ending the 2011-12 season with three consecutive games with a hit.

Dayan Rodriguez earned the win for the Argos, allowing four hits and fanning four. Relief pitcher Kevin Peters was only on the mound two innings for UWF but struck out five of the eight batters he faced, striking out the side after allowing a lead-off single in the seventh.

Florida Southern will get back to action Tuesday, Feb. 5 as they open its home schedule with a 6:00 p.m. non-conference contest against Saint Leo at Henley Field.