LAKELAND, Fla. - The Florida Southern College softball team honored six seniors before the start of the final game of the Sunshine State Conference series against Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University on Saturday afternoon. The Moccasins (16-32, 8-19 SSC) honored
Skyler Ralstin,
Destiny Colgate,
Kiki Morris,
Taylor Thomas,
Mel Rogers, and
Ashley Blessin along with three seniors from Eagles (30-19, 13-14 SSC) before the first pitch.
Embry-Riddle's lead-off batter and right-handed pitcher, Rogers battled it out in the first at-bat of the final game as Rogers threw 13 pitches that ended in a walk. The walk resulted in a run for the Eagles, scoring on an RBI single, putting ERAU up 1-0 after the first inning of action.
After a quiet second inning from both teams, the Eagles led off with a double down the left-field line to quickly get into scoring position. A fielder's choice put a runner on second and advanced the runner at third allowing Embry-Riddle to get within 60 feet of scoring. A one-out RBI single increased the Eagles' lead to 2-0 as runners threatened at the corners. The Mocs were able to pull a double play to get out of the inning with a lineout to Thomas at first and a tag out at home from Colgate.
The first hit from the Mocs came from a leadoff single in the bottom of the fourth from
Kenleigh Smith beating out the throw to first base. With no outs, Smith advanced into scoring position with a groundout but was left stranded in back-to-back flyouts.
Embry-Riddle led off with back-to-back singles to open the top of the fifth and scored from a Moc error to take a 5-0 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, Morris led off with a single down the left-field line and moved into scoring position with a stolen base with just one out.
Kate Mikle advanced Morris to third putting runners at the corners with a single to third base but both runners were left stranded as we headed into the final inning of the series.
To conclude the final inning of the series, head coach
Mo Triner subbed out all of the seniors to pay tribute for their time as Mocassin.
Florida Southern fell in the series 2-1, with a final score of 5-0 in the last game of the series.
The Mocs return to Chris Bellotto Field on May 3 for the final series of the 2024 season. They will host Rollins College in a single game on Friday followed by a doubleheader on Saturday. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
