Florida Tech Panthers Sports Roundup

By  //  April 21, 2014

Panthers Compete at Tom Jones Memorial Invitational

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD – The Florida Tech Panthers sent field athletes to compete at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational Saturday. The event was hosted by the University of Florida. 

Connor Ahlborn
Connor Ahlborn

Connor Ahlborn got the day started for the Panthers when she finished fifth in the women’s hammer throw. Ahlborn turned in a toss of 51.21 meters. Rhoni Gavagni finished 10th in the javelin throw with a toss of 26.15 meters.

Rhoni Gavagni
Rhoni Gavagni

On the men’s side, Daltyn Earl placed six in the discus throw with a toss of 36.27 meters. Kevin Delgado finished third in the shot put at 15.06 meters, and Chris Bridgeman placed fifth in the javelin with a throw of 39.71 meters.

The Panthers will now wait and see if they will receive invitations to the North Florida Invitational. The event will take place on Saturday, April 26 in Jacksonville, Fla. 

Baseball Ends Series with 9-1 Victory Over Barry

BASEBALL – The Florida Tech Panthers played their final home game of the season Sunday when they took on Barry. Barry won the first two games of the Sunshine State Conference series, but the Panthers came back and won the finale 9-1.

Greg Berkemeier
Greg Berkemeier

“For the series overall we have to give credit to Barry,” said head coach Greg Berkemeier. “They played well yesterday, and today we were able to minimize a lot of the things that we did not do well on Saturday. The story of the series is that yesterday their pitching staff did an outstanding job of forcing us to have to manufacture everything, and today we did that to them.”

Andrew Bartlett
Andrew Bartlett

The Panthers (25-19, 9-12 SSC) got their offense going early as they scored seven runs through the first three innings, including four in the second. Freshman David Wilson brought home two of the runs in the second with a base hit to left field. After picking up his first RBI in the second inning, senior Andrew Bartlett added another one in third with a double to right-center.

Leading 7-0, the Panthers added two more runs in the fifth inning. Freshman Grant McKown sent a base hit up the middle, which scored both Bartlett and Wilson.

Grant McKown
Grant McKown

Barry (25-17, 6-12 SSC) was able to score a run in the top of the seventh, and avoided a shutout. Luis Rios-Reyes brought home Danny Nunez with a single up the middle. The Bucs could not close the gap any further, as the Panthers earned the 9-1 victory.

Junior Ashton Fronsoe (3-3) pitched a complete game, and earned the win for the Panthers. He threw seven innings, allowed just the one run on 10 hits, and struck out four.

Ashton Fronsoe
Ashton Fronsoe

“Fronsoe did a great job, and threw a lot of strikes,” Berkemeier said. “He pounded the strike zone, and forced them to have to manufacture everything.”

Blaine Duncan (3-1) suffered the loss for Barry. Duncan pitched just 1.1 innings, allowed six runs on seven hits, and struck out one.

The Panthers now have just four road games remaining this season. They will play the first of those four games on Tuesday when they travel to face Saint Leo. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, and it will be the lone game of the week for the Panthers.

“The preparation has continued every day to get better, that has been the focus all year,” Berkemeier said. “Saint Leo is a tough opponent, and a difficult place to play. They came here and took three games, and we will have a challenge in front of us.”