Gainesville, FL

#6 Santa Fe hosted #12 Seminole State College of Florida on Tuesday, March 24th. The Raiders won the first game 4-3, and the Saints bounced back to win the second game 17-6 in five innings.

Game 1

Mckenzie Cox drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the first, and Molly Bender hit a double to score Cox and give the Saints a 1-0 lead.

The Saints extended their lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the second when Camryn VanGalder singled to score Rylie Blankenship.

A solo home run by the Raiders in the top of the fifth tied the game 2-2, and they scored two runs in the top of the sixth to take the lead 4-2.

Down 4-2 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Ellie Frierson hit a solo home run to cut the Saints' deficit to 4-3. The Saints were unable to complete the comeback and fell with a final strikeout.

Belle Mancillas pitched all seven innings for Santa Fe, recording six strikeouts and allowing seven hits, four walks, and two earned runs.

Molly Bender led the team with two hits, and Tegan Grizzard and McKenna O'Sullivan both stole a base.

Game 2

Santa Fe took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first with a double by Ellie Frierson, which scored Miranda Murch and Sydney English.

The Saints extended the lead to 5-0 with a three-run second inning. Molly Bender doubled to score Camryn VanGalder, and a Raiders error allowed Bender and Rylie Blankenship to come home.

A Saints error allowed the Raiders to score their first run of the game in the top of the third. The Raiders then used a two-run double and two-run home run to tie the game 5-5.

Santa Fe responded thunderously with eight runs in the bottom of the third. Frierson drew a leadoff walk and Haylee McCrea followed up with a home run to give the Saints a 7-5 lead. VanGalder, Blankenship, and Tegan Grizzard all singled to load the bases with no outs. Bender hit a GRAND SLAM to extend the Saints' lead to 11-5. Murch singled to score Mckenzie Cox, and Laura Pierce scored on an error to increase the lead to 13-5.

Bender hit a leadoff solo home run in the bottom of the fourth to increase the Saints' lead to 14-5. A Raiders error allowed English to score, and VanGalder doubled to score Frierson and McCrea and increase the lead to 17-5.

The Raiders hit a RBI-double in the top of the fifth, but the Saints were able to end the game early and end the day with a 17-6 victory.

Morgyn Stevens pitched two and two-thirds innings of relief and earned the win for the Saints.

Molly Bender, Camryn VanGalder, and Rylie Blankenship all recorded three hits, and the Saints had 19 hits as a team. Bender led the team with six RBIs, and Mckenzie Cox stole a base.

Santa Fe will travel to #9 Eastern Florida State College (26-6, 12-4) on Thursday, March 26th for a doubleheader starting at 2:00pm. Eastern Florida traveled to and swept #13 Miami Dade College (17-10, 9-7) on Tuesday, March 24th.