#11 Barry Takes Doubleheader To Sweep #8 Tampa In SSC Series
MIAMI SHORES, Fla. - The No. 8 University of Tampa (27-13, 11-7 SSC) suffered its first sweep since 2004 in Sunshine State Conference play as Barry University (30-12, 16-2 SSC) handed the Spartans a pair of doubleheader losses by scores of 10-1 and 8-1.
The Buccaneers scored a pair of first-inning runs in game one and tacked on two in the third to grab the quick lead. The lone Spartan run came on a fourth-inning single by Cody Davis that scored freshman Connor Obrochta. Damon Elder and Raiko Alfonso each had two hits for UT in the first game of the day.
Frank DiJiulio (5-3) took the loss for Tampa as the junior started and went 4.0 innings. Josh Struble, one of the three relievers used by UT, pitched a scoreless inning and struck out two Bucs.
In game two, Barry scored a pair in the first inning as the lone Tampa run came on a Heath Pritchard double in the fourth inning that scored Andrew Jones. Jones finished with two hits to lead the Spartan offense.
Justin Leith (2-1) started for UT and was the pitcher of record, throwing 4.0 innings and striking out five. Davis doubled up as a pitcher, throwing a perfect sixth inning for UT with a strikeout.
Tampa attempts to put an end to its current four-game losing streak on Friday when its travels to Lakeland to meet SSC rival and No. 14 Florida Southern College. The three-game set will begin on Friday at 7 p.m., and conclude with a 1 p.m., Saturday doubleheader. Live stats will be available through www.tampaspartans.com.
Fans may also follow University of Tampa athletics on Twitter (www.twitter.com/utspartans) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/tampaspartans). UT also offers blAst, a free text messaging service that sends text alerts following all Spartan events. To sign up, please register at www.tampaspartans.com.