A rough start dooms Edward Waters in its NCAA Division II Baseball Tournament opener against West Florida, falling 16-6 to drop down to the Loser’s Bracket.
After a first inning in which they retired the last three batters, allowing a walk on the first plate appearance, the Tigers dug itself a huge hole in the second inning.
Forcing outs on the first two batters of the second, West Florida went on to score five runs, including a three-run homer before the Tigers struck out the last batter to mercifully get out of the inning.
By the fifth inning, Edward Waters faced a 10-0 deficit, with two of the five runs allowed being set up by fielding errors.
In the sixth, the Tigers spoiled a West Florida no-hitter, recording their first hit on a single to third by Jordan Smith.
This led to a pitching change, serving as a source of momentum for the reigning SIAC champions. They took full advantage of this, scoring their first two runs on a wild pitch and a fielder’s choice.
Calvin Scott produced the team’s first RBI of the contest in the seventh, hitting a home run to right field to trim their deficit to 12-3 entering the bottom of the inning.
However, four allowed runs in the bottom of the seventh ended the Tigers’ comeback hopes, despite three runs (including a home run by Joseph Di Cesare) in the final two innings.
The Tigers will now enter the Loser’s Bracket where they will fight for their tournament life against the loser of the opening-round contest between Delta State and Lee.
