Baseball: FAU defeats FIU 7-4 in 2018 C-USA tournament opening game

The game took six hours and 48 minutes to complete due to delays lasting over three hours total

Photo by Max Jackson

Matt Brown, Contributing Writer
May 23, 2018

FAU baseball defeated FIU 7-4 in the opening game of the C-USA tournament.

The Owls (37-15-1, 19-8-1 C-USA) have won four games in a row and six of their last seven.

The Panthers (26-27, 15-13 C-USA) have lost two of their last three after going on a season long four game winning streak.

Jake Miednik got the start on the mound for the Owls allowing one unearned run on two hits, while striking out two before the first lightning delay hit before the start of the third inning.

After the hour and 39-minute delay Blake Sanderson came on in relief for FAU. He allowed the first two batters to reach base before recording three straight outs, including center fielder Cody Wilson’s diving catch to end the inning.

Sanderson allowed just two hits combined over the next two innings before the game went into another hour and a half delay before the bottom of the fifth.

The Owls took a 2-1 lead after the delay with left fielder Eric Rivera’s double to right field scored Cody Wilson and Tyler Frank.

Second baseman Eddie Silva’s solo home run to left field in the top of the sixth tied things back up at two apiece.

Both teams went tit for tat after over the next 4 and a half innings with FAU scoring one run just to be followed up with FIU scoring a run to tie things back up in the top half of the next inning.

Right fielder David Miranda eventually broke the game open in the bottom of the eighth with a three-run single down the right field line to break a 4-4 tie.

Closer Zach Schneider came on in the ninth to secure the 7-4 victory earning his 14th save of the season, extending his C-USA season high.

Jordan Poore got his second win of the year for the Owls, allowing four hits and one run in two innings.

Wilson went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

Designated hitter Jared DeSantolo went 1-for-3 with a run scored.

The Owls will face the winner of No. 2 Louisiana Tech and No. 7 Rice on Thursday with first pitch tentatively scheduled for 8:30 p.m est.

Matt Brown is a contributing writer with the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @mattyb407.