No. 7 Florida Tech Baseball Defeats Barry 9-6
By Florida Tech // April 15, 2015
Tim Whalen improves to 6-0 on the year
BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – It won’t go down in the standings as a Sunshine State Conference win, but nevertheless, No.7 Florida Tech ought to feel good after cruising by Barry 9-6 to complete the perfect four-for-four season sweep over the Buccaneers Tuesday evening.
Freshman Tim Whalen upped his perfect win total to 6-0 on the year after tossing a solid three innings out of the bullpen, and Austin Allen cashed in with a remarkable four-for-five effort at the dish, delivering his team-high 10th homer in a game-changing four-run third inning.
“He had a couple balls that found some gaps, and put a really good swing on the ball that left the ballpark in his second at-bat,” head coach Greg Berkemeier said of the junior.
“That really gave us a bit of a jolt there to take the lead for good. It was a big day, stuff he’s been doing all year.”
Entering the contest averaging 11 runs per game this season against the Bucs, the Panthers wasted no time continuing that trend. Allen’s first-inning double down the right-field line, his NCAA Division II-leading 23rd of the season, scored Reid Neal from second to give Florida Tech an instant 1-0 advantage.
Ricky Rodriguez followed Allen with a sacrifice fly to left, making it 2-0 just minutes into the ballgame.
Making his 10th start, Ty Cohen didn’t appear to have his best stuff at home Tuesday. The Woodstock, Georgia native allowed three earned runs on four hits in three innings of work, but was let off the hook thanks to the impressive hitting display put on at Andy Seminick-Les Hall Field.
Trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the third, the Florida Tech offense went to work.
After Grant McKown was plunked by a 2-1 offering, Allen lined a scorcher off the scoreboard in left-center to pull the Panthers back in front 4-3. The next four batters reached base safely, before David Wilson’s fielder’s choice scored Tyler Doughty to extend the margin to 6-3.
Florida Tech would tack on two more runs in the fifth, and one more in the sixth on Neal’s RBI single up the middle.
Barry plated three in the eighth, but had its late charge halted, as reliever Brett Porter earned his first save in the Panthers’ 20th victory at Seminick-Hall Field in 23 tries.
Providing a lift at the bottom half of the batting order, the trio of Ryan Sinzenich, Wilson and John Sprowls combined to go 6-for-12 in the three-plus hour affair.
“All three of those guys ended up having multiple hits there today,” said Berkemeier.
“A couple of them being big knocks for us. It was good to see that out of those guys. They did a good job. They had good work both yesterday and today, getting themselves prepared, and it was good to see the production.”
The Panthers return to action in their final SSC series against Tampa beginning Friday at 6 p.m.
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