Sports Lowdown

Makayla Palmer - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Florida Tech battled back from a couple early deficits on Thursday, but couldn’t push the tying run across, as Eckerd hung on for a 9-8 victory in game one of the Panthers final home series of the season. Florida Tech starter Rachel Pence got out of a little bit of trouble in the first and came back to strike out two batters in the second inning, before running into trouble in the third. An RBI single by Chelsea Armstrong made it 1-0 and two batters later, Carrie Shere took Pence deep, giving the visitors a 4-0 lead. The Panthers (23-23, 8-11 SSC) got back into the game in the bottom of the fourth, scoring three runs against Tritons starter Nikole Van Gennep. Makayla Palmer started the inning with a single and went to second on a single by Vanessa Rubio .  Julianna Goldberg ’s double plated Palmer, making it 4-1. A single by Karina Suicava brought Rubio in, cutting the lead to 4-2 and a steal of second by Suic...

Rachel Pence - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech softball team got a much-needed conference win on the road Friday night, beating Rollins College, 3-1. Rachel Pence pitched a complete game, helping the Panthers improve to 17-17 overall and 2-5 in the Sunshine State Conference. Pence allowed one run on five hits, picking up her 11 th win of the season. She struck out six and walked three. The Panthers offense spread out six hits, by six different players. Florida Tech took advantage of the early struggles of Rollins pitcher Sarah Piening. Alexus Smith drew a walk to leadoff the game and went to second on a wild pitch. Hailey Leonard singled, putting runners at the corners. After Leonard stole second and Krista Patterson flew out, Vanessa Rubio ’s fielder’s choice plated the Panthers first run. The Panthers got their second run when Makayla Palmer struck out and Rollins catcher Abigail Sexton threw to second, trying to get Rubio stealing. T...

Karina Suicava - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Florida Tech softball won its fourth consecutive game Friday afternoon, taking down the visiting Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish by the score of 8-1, in the opener of a three-game series. “We played really well in all three areas, pitching offense and defense,” said Panthers coach Val Silvestrini. “That was going to be our challenge for this year and I’m really proud of the way we played today.” The Panthers used home runs from Julianna Goldberg and Karina Suicava , along with a stellar pitching performance from Rachel Pence , who allowed just three hits and struck out seven en route to her 10 th win of the season. “She did awesome, it’s all about her hitting her spots and having the right spin,” said Panthers coach Val Silvestrini, of Pence. “I think she’s doing a much better job lately with that and she called a great game.” Florida Tech (15-16) got to Sailfish starter Ashton Adkins early, scoring three ru...

Lynsey Duncan spoiled a valiant Florida Tech comeback in game one of Saturday’s Sunshine State Conference showdown, as she laced a game-winning two-run single back up the middle, sending the Barry Buccaneers to a 7-5 win over Florida Tech. The loss was especially disheartening for the Panthers, who came from 4-1 down and 5-4 down, to force extra innings, only to have it slip away in the ninth. Rachel Pence took the loss, falling to 8-9, despite her complete-game effort. The scoring started in the top of the third, with Cheyanne head hitting a one out triple to right field. The throw back in was off target, allowing Head to score. Florida Tech (11-16) got the run back in the bottom of the inning. Krista Patterson drew a one out walk and later scored on a single by Makayla Palmer , on a 3-2 pitch out of the hand of Barry starter Christie Falcon. The tie didn’t last long, with Barry getting singles by Kristina Osorio and Maddy VonHagel, followed by a run-scoring doub...

The Embry-Riddle Eagles took advantage of three Florida Tech errors on Friday night, en route to a 5-1 softball victory. Makayla Palmer went 2-for-3, while Alexus Smith , Julianna Goldberg and Audrey Gangloff had the other three Florida Tech hits against Embry-Riddle pitcher Illona Andringa. Andringa went the distance, giving up one run and striking out eight. Eryn Chester got things started for the Eagles in the top of the first, with a single up the middle against Florida Tech starter Rachel Pence. Maggie Scott would single later in the inning, bringing Chester home with the first run. A throwing error, coupled with a failed pickoff attempt, resulted in two more runs for the Eagles and a 3-0 lead. Embry-Riddle (5-10) would tack on two more in the bottom of the third. Chester led off with a single and scored on a double by Anna Battison. Scott would bring her home with a sacrifice fly to left, giving the home team a commanding 5-0 lead. Florida Tech (10-9) got ...

The Florida Tech softball team extended their win streak to four Friday night, with a 5-2 win over the St. Mary’s Rattlers in the nightcap of the NFCA Division II Leadoff Classic. Rachel Pence (4-1) who was pitching her fifth game of the season for the Panthers, went the distance, giving up one earned run on four hits, striking out nine and not allowing a walk. It was the fourth complete game of the season for Pence. St. Mary’s (6-2) got on the board in the bottom of the first with the help of an error and an RBI single by Brenda Iparraguirre. The Panthers answered in the bottom of the frame against St Mary’s starter Staci Johns. Makayla Palmer reached on a fielder’s choice and stole second. She came home on a double by Julianna Goldberg . Goldberg would later be thrown out stealing third and Audrey Gangloff would strike out, ending the inning. After Johns struck out the first two batters of the fourth, the Panthers put together a four-run rally to pull away fro...

The Florida Tech softball team bounced back from two losses on Friday, with an early morning 5-0 win over the Nova Southeastern Sharks in the Florida Tech Marriott First Pitch Classic. Panthers pitcher Rachel Pence , who suffered a rare lopsided loss on Friday, looked more like herself on Saturday, giving up just three hits in a complete-game shutout. She struck out five and didn’t walk a batter. FIT got on the board in the bottom of the first, with Krista Patterson drawing a leadoff walk and moving to second on an illegal pitch out of the hand of Megan Granitto. Two outs later, Vanessa Rubio singled Patterson home and gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead. The Panthers added to their lead, when Julianna Goldberg took Granitto deep and out for her first home run of the season. Audrey Gangloff followed her, hitting a grounder to third that was misplayed, allowing her to go all the way to third. That ended the day for Granitto, who was relieved by Erica Winter. The Shark...