Sports Lowdown

Nick Capra - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers ended their 2017 regular season, splitting a doubleheader at Eckerd. After dropping the first game 11-8, in a slugfest, the Panthers used a three run fourth inning in game two, to secure a 4-2 victory. With the victory in game two, the Panthers finished the season 10 games over .500 and won four of their last five games. Game one featured five home runs and was a back-and-forth affair throughout, with Florida Tech starter Tyler Deel going just three innings and Eckerd starter Nick Alonzo, lasting just four. Neither figured in the final outcome. Florida Tech (30-20, 14-10 SSC) got a run in the top of the first. Grant McKown singled and moved to third on a failed pickoff attempt later in the inning. He came home on a single by Reid Neal . Deel started the bottom of the first by hitting leadoff man Tom Buonopane, but he picked him off moments later. It was one of two pickoffs Deel had in h...

Nick Capra - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers (26-16, 10-6 SSC) earned an important victory over Rollins Wednesday night, in the opening game of a three-game series. Andy Marzheuser pitched eight shutout innings, leading the Panthers to a 5-1 Sunshine State Conference victory. It was quite a pitcher’s duel between Marzheuser and Brad Case for six innings, but the Panthers offense, which was held to two hits for much of the night, finally broke through in the seventh inning.  Dan Szpik got things going with a one out double off the left field wall and Nick Capra plated him with an RBI single. David Wilson flew out, but it was deep enough to move Capra to third and that would be key, because he would score on a wild pitch, giving the Panthers a 2-0 lead. Case would leave after seven strong innings, allowing two runs on four hits. He struck out 10 and walked only one.  Whit Drennan replaced him on the mound and the Panthers of...

Reid Neal - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Following their 10-2 win on Friday , highlighted by a grand slam off the bat of Reid Neal , the Panthers continued their power surge on Saturday, with a sweep of a doubleheader. Florida Tech won game one, 9-4, helped by another Neal slam and they took game two, 5-3, with the decisive home run off the bat of Dan Szpik . David Wilson had home runs in both games. In game one, Barry jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first, when Julian Abreu took FIT starter Tyler Deel over the right field wall, on a 1-0 pitch. In the top of the second, Florida Tech tied the game when Grant McKown took a 3-2 pitch from Barry starter Luis Deville, tying the game at one. That brought Neal to the plate and he wasted no time, drilling an 0-1 pitch over the wall in left-center, giving the Panthers a 5-1 lead. Szpik made a great diving catch in the bottom of the third, but a Justin Lamazares double and an error made it a 5-2 gam...

Nick Capra - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography After helping the Panthers come from behind in game one with his walk-off single, Ryan Sinzenich put together a 3-for-5, for RBI performance in game two, leading the Panthers to a 9-3 victory over Lynn on Saturday. Nick Capra was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. Both teams had 12 hits in the contest, but the Panthers were the more productive bunch, scoring eight earned runs. Florida Tech starter Andy Marzheuser was the beneficiary, as he improved to 5-1. He went five innings, allowing just one run on six hits. He walked one and struck out five. The Florida Tech offense got started early, scoring twice in the second inning against Fighting Knights starter Michael Imperato. Capra walked and went to third one out later, on a passed ball. He scored on a ground out by Sinzenich. After Kevin Capella singled back to the mound, Zac Orchard doubled him home. Capra got the fourth inning off to a good start wi...

Ryan Sinzenich - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers scored seven runs in the fifth inning Saturday and hung on for a 10-6 win over Palm Beach Atlantic, in game one of a doubleheader. Game two did not fall the Panthers way, as they fell by the score of 4-3. The Sailfish used six pitchers in game one, trying to slow down a Florida Tech offense that got off to a quick start. John Sternagel doubled against Palm Beach Atlantic starter Tyler Hawks. He was sacrificed to third by Kevin Capella and scored on a ground out by Reid Neal . PBA answered, scoring a run off Panthers starter Tyler Deel . Sean Visconti hit into a double play, but Evan Dougherty scored, tying the game. PBA grabbed the lead in the bottom of the third, when Visconti doubled home Dougherty. The score stayed that way until the top of the fifth, when Florida Tech exploded for seven runs. Sternagel singled and later scored on a Grant McKown base hit, tying the game at two. C...

Reid Neal - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Southern Moccasins put Florida Tech behind the eight ball in Sunshine State Conference play, sweeping the three-game weekend series, highlighted by a doubleheader sweep on Saturday, at Andy Seminick-Les Hall Field. Following their 3-0 win on Friday in the series opener , the Mocs took game one on Saturday, 3-2 and won a high-scoring game two, 12-8. Tyler Deel got the start for Florida Tech in game one and pitched well for six innings, despite giving up a leadoff home run to Cody Burgess to start the proceedings. That run held until the bottom of the fourth, when Dan Szpik and Ryan Sinzenich started the frame with back-to-back singles against Florida Southern starter Jake Walsh, Nick Capra reached on fielder’s choice, loading the bases. James Gronberg then grounded out to first, getting the run home and tying the game. Florida Tech got their first lead of the night in the bottom of the fifth. The...

Daniel Szpik - Credit: James Ragan Photography Florida Tech starter Andy Marzheuser gave up one hit in six innings on Friday and got plenty of offensive support, as the Panthers took down the Golden Rams of Albany State, 10-2 in Dahlonega, GA. Marzheuser (3-0) gave up two runs (one earned), walked five and struck out two, throwing 91 pitches. Jake Lane threw 34 pitches, earning a three inning save for the Panthers, who improved to 9-3 on the season. The Panthers jumped out in front in the top of the first, with Reid Neal doubling with one out, followed by a Grant McKown walk. They weren’t on base long, because Daniel Szpik took Albany State starter Lawrence Hyde deep, giving the Panthers an early 3-0 lead. FIT added a run in the second. Kevin Capella hit a two out double down the left field line and went to third on a wild pitch. John Sternagel doubled to bring him home. Albany State (0-9) answered in the bottom of the inning, when Ryan McClend walked an...

Nick Capra - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The first game of Sunday’s doubleheader was a forgettable one for Florida Tech, as they fell to Spring Hill, 19-6. After the Panthers pounded out 18 hits in their 13-1 win Saturday, the Badgers matched that number in game one on Sunday. The Panthers came back in game two with an impressive 7-0 victory, thanks in large part to the five scoreless innings thrown by Andy Marzheuser . Tyler Deel (2-1) allowed seven runs in the first two innings Sunday and faced one batter in the third before giving way to Grant Willcoxon who finished the third, but was yanked after facing four batters in the fourth. The Panthers used six pitchers in game one. Spring Hill scored two in the first, before putting five on the board in the second. Conner Harrison’s three run homer highlighted that second inning. Deel pitched two-plus innings allowing seven runs (six earned) on five hits, walked three and struck out five. He threw 70 pitche...

Florida Tech baseball swept a doubleheader from Lincoln Memorial on Saturday, winning game two 9-3. The Panthers, who took game one earlier in the day by a score of 6-4, stroked 12 hits in game two and overcame four errors in the contest. These two wins, together with Friday’s win in the home opener gave the Panthers a series sweep of the Railsplitters. Andy Marzheuser got some early run support from his Panther teammates en route to his first win of the season. He pitched five innings, allowing six hits and two earned runs, striking out two and walking one. He was backed up by three relievers. Offensively, the Panthers were led by Grant McKown ’s 3-for-4 day. He knocked in a run and scored twice. Reid Neal and Kevin Capella had two hits each. Florida Tech (6-1) scored twice in the bottom of the first. John Sternagel started the inning with a double off Lincoln Memorial starter Matt Mullenbach (1-0). After Neal walked, the runners both moved up on a passed ...

The Florida Tech Panthers completed a doubleheader sweep of the Mississippi College Choctaws on Friday night, with an 8-3 victory in game two. This victory followed a 6-4 win for the Panthers, earlier in the day. As they did in game one, the Panthers gave up a lead late, but they came from behind for the second time, scoring six runs in the final two innings and turning a one run deficit into a five-run lead. Florida Tech scored a run in the fourth inning on an RBI single by James Gronberg . The hit scored Grant McKown , who reached on an error to start the inning, against Choctaws starting pitcher Zach Ingram. David Wilson started the fifth inning with a single and later scored on a single off the bat of John Sternagel , giving the Panthers a 2-0 lead. Andy Marzheuser got the start for the Panthers in game two and he pitched 4.1 innings of no-hit baseball, before Colton Johnson got the first hit if the game for the home team. After Johnson stole second and Grant ...