University of North Florida
34-17, 12-6
USC Upstate
20-28, 3-14
@OspreyBSB Completes Sweep in Home Finale
5/15/2016 7:34:00 PM | Baseball
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – North Florida (34-17, 12-6 A-Sun) rallied for eight runs in the final three innings en route to a 13-6 victory over USC Upstate (20-28, 3-14 A-Sun). The win completes a three-game sweep of the Spartans in the final game at Harmon Stadium this season.
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After the Ospreys jumped out to a 5-0 lead after the first two innings, the Spartans came back and tied the game up in the top fourth with back-to-back, two-out RBI singles by J.J. Shimko and Daniel Fickas. The Ospreys finally broke the 5-5 tie in the bottom of the sixth when Alex Merritt came through with a two-RBI single scoring Nick Karmeris and Corbin Olmstead giving the Ospreys a 7-5 lead.
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The Ospreys never relinquished the lead from there and did not trail in any of the three games against USC Upstate this weekend. It marked the third-straight day the Ospreys had 10 or more hits, adding 13 more to their weekend total. The Ospreys improved to 27-3 when collecting 10-plus hits in a game.
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After the Spartans pulled within a run in the top of the eighth, North Florida responded with a six-run bottom half. The big hit in the inning came off the bat of Keith Skinner who laced a three-run double down the right field line. The senior catcher finished the day 3-for-6 with three runs and four RBIs.
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Olmstead came on to pitch in eighth inning and stranded the tying run on base. He recorded the final five outs and registered his team-leading sixth save of the season. At the plate, Olmstead finished off a monster weekend with a 4-for-5 effort. He scored a run and drove in his 52nd and 53rd runs of the year. Olmstead was 10-for-16 with a home run, four runs scored and six RBIs in three games against the Spartans.
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The USC Upstate pitching staff struggled with control all afternoon walking 13 Osprey batters and hitting another two. Dakota Higdon and Chris Berry each walked four times, tying a North Florida single game record.
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Junior Matthew Naylor was credited with his fourth win of the season after pitching 2.2 innings, allowing two hits and a run. He fanned three of the 10 batters he faced in his 28th appearance of the year. The win is his 12th in the last two seasons, the eighth most in the D-1 era.
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Sophomore Matt Vaka made his fifth relief appearance of the year and didn't allow a run in 1.2 innings pitched. Making his second start of his career and second start of the week, right-hander Adam Polansky allowed three earned runs in three innings pitched while striking out two.
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The Ospreys will wrap up their regular season schedule on the road when they travel to New Jersey for a three-game series with NJIT. The series will begin Thursday night at 6:00 p.m. at Riverfront Stadium.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Naylor, Matthew (4-3)
L: HATHAWAY, Bryan (2-1)
S: Olmstead, Corbin (6)
Batting:
RBI: SHIMKO, J.J. 2 ; FICKAS, Daniel 2 ; CARPENTER, Charlie 1 ; MILLER, Jordan 1
SH: BEAVER, Jake 1 ; BRUNDAGE, Brendan 2 ; MILLER, Jordan 1
SF: FICKAS, Daniel 2
Base Running:
RUNS: SHIMKO, J.J. 1 ; GILBERT, Hunter 1 ; KRIDER, Zach 2 ; BRUNDAGE, Brendan 1 ; MILLER, Jordan 1
HBP: KRIDER, Zach 1
Batting:
2B: Brooks, Kyle 1 ; Skinner, Keith 1
RBI: Brooks, Kyle 1 ; Higdon, Dakota 1 ; Skinner, Keith 4 ; Olmstead, Corbin 2 ; Karmeris, Nick 1 ; Thibideau, Chris 1 ; Merritt, Alex 2 ; Olivera, Bubba 1
SH: Board, Dalton 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Brooks, Kyle 1 ; Higdon, Dakota 2 ; Skinner, Keith 3 ; Olmstead, Corbin 1 ; Karmeris, Nick 1 ; Board, Dalton 1 ; Merritt, Alex 1 ; Berry, Chris 1 ; Olivera, Bubba 2
HBP: Thibideau, Chris 1 ; Merritt, Alex 1
