Early Surge Carries Spartans Past Warner
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 2 |
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3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 11 | 10 | 1 |
TAMPA, Fla. — The No. 3 University of Tampa baseball team held off a midgame push from Warner University to earn an 11–7 victory Monday night at Tampa Baseball Field.
The Spartans improved to 23–4 overall, building an early eight‑run cushion before weathering a seven‑run fourth inning from the Royals. Tampa responded with timely offense late and relied on its bullpen to close out the non‑conference win.
How It Happened
Tampa jumped out quickly in the opening frame, scoring three runs in the first behind a Brayden Woodburn RBI triple, a sacrifice fly from Gunnett Carlson, and an unearned run on a throwing error. The Spartans added two more in the second on sacrifice flies from Woodburn and Gunnett Carlson, extending the lead to 5–0.
In the third, Tampa continued to apply pressure. Jesse Ponce lifted a sacrifice fly, and Jordan Evans followed with a two‑RBI triple, pushing the margin to 8–0.
Warner answered in a big way in the fourth, sending 11 batters to the plate and scoring seven runs to trim the deficit to 8–7. Tampa responded immediately as Javi Soto lined an RBI single later in the inning to regain breathing room.
The Spartans added insurance in the seventh on sacrifice flies from Dennis McCaffery and Woodburn, pushing the lead to 11–7. From there, Tampa's bullpen took over. Cade Drohan, Kenney Robinson, and Oscar Hernandez combined to shut down the Royals over the final innings, allowing no runs and securing the win.
Top Performers
- Jordan Evans: 3-for-4, 2 RBI, triple, run — ignited the offense and delivered key extra‑base hits.
- Brayden Woodburn: 1-for-2, 3 RBI, triple, run — drove in runs in multiple ways, including a sacrifice fly and RBI triple.
- Jhoander Irigoyen: 0-for-4, 3 RBI — came through with run‑producing swings despite being hitless.
- Javi Soto: 2-for-5, RBI — critical response after Warner's fourth‑inning rally.
- Cade Drohan (W): 2.1 IP, 0 R, 4 K — steadied the game out of the bullpen.
- Oscar Hernandez (Sv, 1): 1.2 IP, 0 R — locked down the final outs.
Up Next
Tampa opens its next Sunshine State Conference series on the road at Embry‑Riddle on Friday, March 27, with first pitch scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Sliwa Stadium in Daytona Beach, Fla.