May 11, 2007

Box Score

BUIES CREEK, N.C. - The University of North Florida baseball team came on top of a rollercoaster outing on Friday, taking both games of a doubleheader from Campbell on a day where the teams combined for 61 hits and 41 runs.

UNF (22-28, 11-12 Atlantic Sun Conference) has now won six out of its last seven games and three in-a-row. The Ospreys were able to overcome a pesky Camels team that had them against the ropes in the first game. UNF overcame a five-run deficit in the first game only to come back and win 9-8 in 11 innings. The Ospreys were fortunate in the second game to win 13-11 after letting a 10-1 lead slip away.

Redshirt freshman Mycal Jones was at the front of the run production brigade, jacking out two home runs in the second game and finishing with a career-high seven RBIs, which was just one off the UNF record for most in a game set by Todd Nunley in 1997. On the day, Jones went 4-for-10 with eight RBIs and scored four times.

Freshman TJ Thompson collected his fifth game-winning RBI in the first game, knocking a single up the middle in the top of the 11th inning that drove junior TJ Gaudy around to score the winning run. Thompson finished the day 6-for-9 with three doubles, three runs scored and three RBIs. He had a career-best of four hits in the first game.

Senior Jon Dandridge went 5-for-8 on the day and scored four times with three triples and three RBIs. His two triples in the second game tied a UNF record held by B.J. Guzzone (1988) and Chris Adams (1991).

The Ospreys looked down and out in game one after senior LHP Brad Johnson had a rough outing and allowed six runs on 10 hits with four strikeouts. UNF trailed 6-1 after CU's Brandon Scott hit a grand-slam home run in the bottom of the fifth inning.

But UNF came out of the nowhere in the seventh inning and scored seven runs to take an 8-6 lead. The inning was highlighted by a two-run home run by junior designated hitter Travis Martin. Senior Jimmy Glanville, Martin, Thompson and Dandridge all drove in runs in the inning.

Things weren't wrapped up yet though. Campbell scored runs in the bottom of the seventh and eighth to tie the game at eight. After that it became a game of which team had the stronger will to win. UNF proved it was that team when sophomore Antonio Franzese held the Ospreys in the game through the last five innings of the game to pick up his second win of the season, and it allowed Thompson to do his magic in the top of the 11th. Franzese allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits while striking out two.

UNF got off to a fast start in game two, jumping out to a 10-1 lead after the first four innings. But the Camels came charging back, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the fifth to cut the UNF lead to 10-8 and knock senior starting RHP Derek Bell out of the game. UNF didn't help themselves in the field, committing a season-high five errors. The Ospreys added three more runs in the top of the sixth, which was just enough for reliever Jonathan Turner to pitch the last 4.2 innings and improve his record to 4-1.

Glanville finished the day with four hits, three RBIs and two doubles. The Ospreys combined for nine two-baggers on the day.

UNF will go for the sweep of Campbell at 1 p.m. tomorrow at Taylor Field. Live stats and audio are available on UNFOspreys.com.