BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic baseball earned a 14-4 run-rule victory over Rice on Sunday to take two of three in the series. At 5-4, the Owls are now over .500 in Conference USA for the first time.
THE BEGINNING
After falling behind in each of the first two games in the series, Mitchell Hartigan made sure that would not be the case on Sunday. A two-run opposite field home run in the bottom of the first put the home side ahead early.
Rice scored a run in the top of the second, but the visiting Owls could not keep up with the scoring pace of the home Owls. FAU scored three in the second and three in the third to lead 8-3.
THE TURNING POINT
Brandon Smith took over on the mound for Florida Atlantic in the fourth and quieted any hopes of a Rice comeback. The graduate senior delivered three scoreless frames with just one hit allowed.
THE FINISH
The offense stretched the lead to 12-3 in the seventh. Armando Albert led off with his fourth hit of the day – a double down the right field line. Two batters later, he scored on a Nolan Schanuel base hit. After a Jackson Ross sacrifice fly made it 11-3, Lucas Phelps lined a single up the middle to tack on one more.
Rice pulled one back in the top of the eighth but the home Owls were ready to end it early in the bottom of the inning. With Albert on second and one out, Schanuel teed off for his 10th home run of the season. The walk off bomb made it 14-4 and ended the game on the run-rule.
THE ARMS
- Dylan Oborne made his second career start on a pitch count and completed an inning and two-thirds.
- Marc DeGusipe backed up the starter with 1.1 innings before giving way to Smith for the next three.
- Braden Ostrander completed the last two innings with one run allowed. He struck out the side in the seventh inning.
THE BATS
- Albert finished 4-for-5 and tied the program single-game record with five runs scored.
- Schanuel (3-for-4) drove in four runs to stretch his season total to a team-leading 34.
- The Boynton native has now reached base successfully in 24 straight games.
- Ross remained one behind his fellow corner infielder in the runs batted in category after a 2-for-3, three-RBI day.
- Hartigan posted another multi-hit day (2-for-3) and scored four runs.
- John Schroeder singled twice and scored two runs.
- The Owls totaled 15 hits and scored in six of the eight innings.
WHAT’S NEXT
Florida Atlantic will welcome No. 16 Florida Gulf Coast to town on Tuesday for a midweek non-conference matchup before starting a three-game series at FIU on Thursday.
TICKETS
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