Fort Myers, FL- On Saturday, the #14 ranked Santa Fe softball team traveled down south to face #4 Florida Southwestern. The Saints are coming off of a two-game skid after being swept by another top 10 team (College of Central Florida). The Saints put a valiant fight, but were overwhelmed by the offensive attack of the Bucs. The Saints drop Game 1 6-2 and Game 2 8-0. The Saints are now 31-16 on the season. 

How It Happened

Game 1

Mallory Forrester started out in the circle for the Saints. She went the distance, pitching all six innings. She had four strikeouts, four hits, and seven walks in the game. The Bucs used the rotation of Esmee Ames, Leah Myer, and Lea Chevrier. Together, they had a total of five strikeouts, six hits, and six walks.

The Saints recorded six hits in the game while the Bucs recorded four hits. Karris Rhine lead the way offensively for the Saints. She went 2-for-2 at the plate and recorded one walk. Sydney Fowler, Juliann Smith, Aliana Mercado and Alexis Daphney also recorded a hit. Jayla Clark recorded two walks and a steal.

The Bucs struck fast and hard as they put up five runs in the first inning. The Saints scored their first run in the third inning, as Fowler scored on a Juliann Smith ground ball single to shortstop Mia Terito. The Bucs scored one run in the fourth inning to increase their lead to 6-1. Alexis Daphney hit a solo line drive home run to center field in the fifth inning.

The Saints drop Game 1 with a final score of 6-2.    

Game 2

Ryleigh Bauer started in the circle for the Saints in Game 2. She pitched two innings and recorded two strikeouts. Peyton Bass came in as relief pitcher for 2.2 innings. 

The Saints struggled at the plate, as they only recorded three hits. Only Alexis Daphney, Madi Conway, and Sophia Davis recorded hits in Game 2. In contrast, the Bucs recorded a total of eight hits. Leading the way for the Bucs offensively was second baseman Maddy Golka, who went 2-for-3 at the plate.

FSW scored eight runs in the first five innings, which lead to an early run rule decision. The Saints dropped Game 2 and the series with a final score of 8-0.      

Up Next 

The Saints will face Seminole State College on Tuesday, April 16th at home. The first pitches will occur at 2PM and 4PM EDT.