WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - The big innings just keep coming for the Davenport baseball team down in Florida as they scored 16 runs, including eight in the fourth inning of a 16-6 win over Judson at Chain O' Lakes Stadium.
The starting pitchers did not have command of the strike zone as they battled over the first four innings.
Sam Traver gave up two runs in the first inning but then settled in enough to go four innings. Traver threw 79 pitches but just 41 for strikes. He got a ton of run support in the fourth inning as DU got to Josh Rahn. Rahn was removed in the fourth after getting just one out. He threw 70 pitches but just 28 strikes. Rahn gave up five hits and four earned runs with seven walks and no strikeouts.
Davenport was helped out by two errors in the top of the fourth which continued their at-bat. Brennan Polcyn came in for Rahn and was rudely greeted by back-to-back homers in the sixth inning by
Zac Wilson and
Brian Sobieski. Wilson's second of the season went over the right field wall for a two-run shot scoring
Andrew Figueroa. Sobieski's solo blast over the left field wall was his third of the season and 20th of his career to set the school record. Sobieski ended the game going 3-for-3 at the plate with a triple, home run, three runs scored and three RBI. He increased his career RBI total to 120 which is also a school record. Wilson went 2-for-4 with two runs.
Evan Maize started in the bottom of the fifth on the mound for DU and got the win in his first appearance. Maize went two innings and allowed one run with two strikeouts. Davenport tacked on three runs in the sixth based on the previous two homers and then added four more runs in the eighth.
Jake O'Donovan had the big hit, a three-run homer over the left center field wall, for his first career round-tripper.
The Eagles made it somewhat interesting in the bottom of the seventh with three runs before an out was recorded.
Pete Zeimis inherited bases loaded up 12-6 and got leadoff hitter Joe Kurucar to flyout weakly to left for the first out. Tanner Kehrer then grounded into a double play to end the inning. After DU scored four in the top of the eighth, Zeimis closed it out in the bottom of the eighth by getting three straight flyouts to center field.
Davenport hitters walked nine times in the game and were hit by a pitch twice.
Noah Marcoux had two hits in three at-bats including an RBI single which plated the first run of the game for the Panthers. The team has won four straight and improved to 5-2. They will face Minnesota State-Mankato tomorrow at 2 p.m. in Auburndale. The Mavericks will be playing their first game of the season and were 46-11 a season ago.
