ST. PETERSBURG — The Eckerd Tritons baseball team completed a two-game sweep over the visiting Roosevelt Lakers on Thursday, winning game one by a score of 9-3 before taking the finale 22-0.
In game one, Kam Gelwick helped Eckerd respond to a run by Roosevelt in the first, with a double to right-center to bring in Corey Hodierne and even the score at 1-1. The two teams exchanged scoreless frames in the second before the Lakers took their second lead of the contest with a tally in the top of the third.
Eckerd answered with a four-spot in the bottom half, highlighted by a Gelwick grand slam to give him five RBI for the game. Roosevelt secured a run back in the fourth, but it served as the final run of the game for the visitors. Dawson Jones added one more to the Tritons' total in the fifth with an RBI single, and the team broke the game open with three in the sixth on Christian Cabina's three-run blast.
Nathan Norwood earned the win after going six innings and striking out six.
In game two, the Tritons erupted for 22 runs, which began with nine in the third inning alone. After two scoreless frames, Eckerd saw run-scoring hits from Hodierne, Luis Garrido and Jones before Ean Gimson sent a ball over the fence to cap off the nine-run surge.
The Tritons put up 11 more in the fourth inning, this time seeing run-producing hits by Joey Bazydlo and Gimson to kick things off prior to a walk and a wild pitch bringing in the next runs. Irv Fisher added an RBI hit to give Eckerd its 15th run of the game, while Jack Ploppert, Jake Ambrosio and Coltin Pizzio all drove in runs during the scoring outburst. Gimson secured his third RBI of the fourth inning alone with a bases-loaded walk to end the onslaught.
Anthony Marino and Ambrosio accounted for the final two runs of the contest in the fifth before the game was called for weather in the sixth.
Grady Bivens earned the win on the mound, striking out seven in just four innings of work.
The Tritons are now 12-4 on the season and have won eight in a row. The team will be back in action Tuesday vs. Winona State.
