Season-High 19 Hits Leads Ospreys Past Spartans

Saturday, March 15

Jacksonville, Fla.

1 p.m.

University of North Florida

USC Upstate

Photo by: UNC Athletics

3/15/2014 4:47:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

Box Score (PDF)
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The North Florida baseball team racked up a season-high, 19 hits en route to 13-4 Atlantic Sun victory over USC Upstate (9-12, 1-1 Atlantic Sun) this afternoon. The Ospreys move to 8-9 on the season and even their A-Sun record to 1-1 on the year.

A trio of Ospreys put forth, three-hit efforts to power the North Florida attack. Eight of the nine Osprey starters for the afternoon registered at least one hit. Junior Trent Higginbothem was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored. Alex Bacon and sophomore Ty Kelly combined to go 6-for-9 with three RBIs and three runs scored while batting in the eight and nine holes.

On the mound, junior Evan Incinelli went seven strong innings in his longest outing of the season. The right-hander picked up his team-leading third win of the year. He allowed three runs and struck out two in the seven-inning span. Classmate Jordan Nolan pitched the final two innings in relief for the Ospreys, yielding just one run.

The Ospreys used two big innings to put the game out of reach. Just like last night in the series-opener UNF was quick to score, posting five runs in the bottom of the first. Junior Drew Weeks kicked off the Osprey rally, registering his 10^th RBI of the season on a sacrifice fly that scored Kyle Brooks. An RBI single by Higginbothem followed by a two-run double from catcher James Abbatinozzi plated three runs and put the home team up 4-0. Bacon capped the inning with his first hit of the day, a single that scored Abbatinozzi to give the Ospreys a commanding 5-0 lead.

A second, five-run inning for the Ospreys in the bottom of the seventh put the game out of reach. UNF compiled six hits in the frame, three of them coming before the Spartans recorded an out. Back-to-back RBI singles by Corbin Olmstead and Weeks started the rally and drove reliever Brian Boocock out of the ball game. A pinch-hit single by Alex Merritt and an infield single by Bacon scored the 12^th and 13^th runs of the game for the Ospreys.

USC Upstate scored in three of the first five innings but could not keep pace with the hard-hitting UNF offense. Spartan first baseman Zach Krider was 4-for-5 with an RBI while catcher Luke Weber hit his first home run of the season in the top of the fifth inning.

The North Florida defense was once again solid behind Incinelli and Nolan. The Ospreys turned three double plays in the contest and committed only one error. Brooks was busy at shortstop, setting a new Division I school mark with 10 assists in the game. Brooks now has 244 career assists which ranks him seventh all-time in the UNF Division I era.

Weeks finished the afternoon with two hits, two runs and two RBIs. The rightfielder has now hit safely in 25-straight games dating back to last season and has four RBIs in two games against the Spartans. Abbatinozzi made is ninth start behind the dish for UNF and was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored.

The Ospreys will look to take the series tomorrow afternoon in the rubber game of a three game series with USC Upstate. Head Coach Smoke Laval will send senior Tyler Moore (0-0) to the mound and he will be opposed by right-hander Dylan Parker (0-1). First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Harmon Stadium.