GAME 1 | Jacksonville 11, N.C. A&T 7
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Sophomore Jaden Bastian put together an outstanding outing at the plate Saturday, hitting two homers to help power the Jacksonville Dolphins past the North Carolina A&T Aggies 11-7.
Senior Blake Barquin (2-2) started on the mound and picked up the win for JU. The right-hander went five innings, giving up three runs, two earned, allowing no walks and striking out five. Junior Aaron Zenus also made an impact on the mound for the Dolphins, throwing three scoreless innings while allowing three hits, with three walks and two strikeouts.
Bastian went 2-for-3 at the plate, supplementing his two home runs with five RBIs. Junior Chandler Howard added to the offensive effort, going 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in a standout performance. Sophomore Jonah Shields also chipped in for the Dolphins, going 2-for-4 with two doubles, a walk and an RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The 'Phins put runs on the board first, starting the scoring in the second inning. Howard put JU on the board with a leadoff home run off junior Matt Murtagh.
JU lost the lead they built in the second, but got back on the board in the fourth trailing 3-1. Jacksonville scored once on an RBI single off the bat of Howard, which tightened the Aggies lead to 3-2.
Barquin kept the Aggies scoreless before the bats rallied to take a 6-3 lead in the fifth. The Dolphins heated up at the plate in the inning, scoring four runs, highlighted by a three-run home run from Bastian and an RBI base hit from Howard to make it 6-3.
Zenus came out of the bullpen in the sixth to relieve Barquin and held the Aggies scoreless, allowing the 'Phins offense to get back to work. The three-run frame for the Dolphins was highlighted by Bastian's second home run of the day and his third of the year, with
Josh Steidl adding an RBI single, bringing the score to 9-3 in favor of JU.
The Dolphins held the Aggies scoreless before expanding their lead to 11-3 in the following inning, with sophomore
Conner Spelman driving in a run with a single. Shields then walked on a 3-2 count with the bases loaded, bringing in another run in a two-run frame. North Carolina A&T put four runs on the scoreboard before the game was over, but the Dolphins still coasted to the 11-7 win.
GAME NOTES
- The 'Phins had both Shields and Bastian crush multiple extra-base hits in the ballgame.
- Every Jacksonville starter reached base safely in the win.
- Jacksonville's highest scoring inning was the fifth, when it pushed four runs across.
- Jacksonville pitchers limited N.C. A&T to just 2-for-15 (.133) with runners in scoring position.
- Dolphin pitchers faced 44 N.C. A&T hitters in the game, allowing 13 ground balls and four fly balls while striking out nine.
- Jacksonville went 5-for-9 (.556) with runners in scoring position.
- JU drew seven walks from N.C. A&T pitching.
GAME 2 | Jacksonville 6, N.C. A&T 0
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. --Senior Colin Rothermel, junior
Anthony Cordero and junior
Nick Anello combined to throw a shutout on Saturday as the Jacksonville Dolphins blanked the North Carolina A&T Aggies 6-0.
Rothermel (2-2) started and picked up the win for Jacksonville (8-7), going seven shutout innings while giving up four hits, walking none, and striking out eight. Anello was dealing out of the bullpen as well, going one shutout inning without allowing a hit, walking two and striking out three.
Offensively, the Dolphins were led by DeLamielleure, who went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI. Bastian also had a strong performance, going 1-for-2 with three walks and two RBI. Shields contributed with three hits in four at-bats, adding a walk and an RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Dolphins took the lead in the third on an RBI single from DeLamielleure, driving in Bastian from third.
The Dolphins exploded for five runs in the eighth inning to extend their lead. The scoring started when Westmoreland grounded out to second, driving in Masters from third, putting Jacksonville ahead 2-0. Bastian then singled, driving in both Edmonds and Kelly, and advanced to second on a throwing error, bringing the score to 4-0. Shields followed with a single to left, scoring Bastian and extending the lead to 5-0. Finally, DeLamielleure capped off the rally with a double to left field, bringing Shields home to make it 6-0.
Anello came out of the bullpen in the ninth inning and secured the win, sealing the series sweep for Jacksonville.
GAME NOTES
- Jacksonville got three-hit games from both Shields and DeLamielleure.
- The Dolphins pitching staff combined to strike out 12 N.C. A&T hitters.
- JU out-hit the Aggies at a 9-5 clip.
- DeLamielleure stole two bases in Saturday's game.
- Jacksonville pitchers held N.C. A&T to an 0-for-8 performance with runners in scoring position.
- Dolphin pitchers faced 33 N.C. A&T hitters in the game, allowing nine ground balls and five fly balls while striking out 12.
- The Dolphins drew eight walks from N.C. A&T pitching.
POSTGAME WITH COACH HAYES
UP NEXT
The Dolphins head to Daytona Beach on Tuesday to face Bethune-Cookman in a midweek matchup, with first pitch scheduled for 6:00 PM.
