NORFOLK, Va. – A ninth inning rally came up just short for the Florida Atlantic University baseball team on Saturday afternoon. The Owls dropped game two against Old Dominion by a score of 11-7.
THE BEGINNING
FAU took its first lead of the series with two runs in the second inning. After Jackson Ross doubled and Steven Loden walked, Shane Magrann found a gap in right center to open the scoring. A sacrifice fly from Caleb Pendleton made it 2-0.
Owls’ starter Jacob Josey was rolling along through 2.2 before hitting a speed bump in the third. With two outs, he allowed back-to-back singles and then a hit by pitch. That brought ODU slugger Andy Garriola to the plate. The 235 lb. senior took a 2-0 pitch over the left centerfield wall for a grand slam.
THE TURNING POINT
Old Dominion continued to rely on the long ball to increase their lead. Robbie Petracci hit a two-run homer in the fifth. In the seventh, again with two outs, Carter Trice, Matt Coutney, and Garriola went back-to-back-to-back with solo shots.
The Owls were down 9-2 but made things interesting with four runs in the top of the eighth. A two-RBI double down the third base line by Loden made it a five-run game. Magrann then poked an infield single to first base to make it 9-5 and a wild pitch plated one more.
THE FINISH
ODU tacked on two runs in the bottom of the eighth and led 11-6 entering the ninth. In the final half inning, Monarchs’ closer Noah Dean walked in a run with the bases loaded and brought the tying run to the plate with one out. Dean eluded the real damage, however, eventually striking out the side to end the game.
THE ARMS
- Josey allowed eight hits in 6.2 innings in his first start since February 25
- Sam Drumheller got the final out of the seventh and the first two of the eighth. He was chared with three runs on three hits
- Marc DeGusipe allowed a hit but worked out of the jam in the eighth
THE BATS
- Ross (2-for-4), Magrann (2-for-5), and Gabriel Rincones, Jr. (2-for-5) all finished with multi-hit days
- Magrann and Loden had two RBI each
- Loden also scored two runs as did Ross
- The Owls finished with 10 hits – the 22nd time in 40 games they’ve reached double digits in the hit column
WHAT’S NEXT
Sunday’s series finale will get underway at 12:05. The Owls will then be home for a Tuesday meeting with Florida Gulf Coast and a three-game weekend series with FIU.
TICKETS
To purchase FAU tickets, call 1-866-FAU-OWLS or click HERE. Stay informed by reading FAUSports.com, or through the baseball’s Twitter and Instagram accounts @FAUBaseball.
