Riley dominant as Eagles take series opener from Gulf Coast State

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (March 29, 2013) – For three days, Tallahassee Community College head coach Mike McLeod "debated and debated" on who to send to the mound for Friday's series opener against Gulf Coast State College.

Patrick Riley needed only eight innings to show his coach he made the right call. 

Riley, a sophomore from Duluth, Ga., delivered his best performance in a Tallahassee uniform, and the Eagles generated just enough offense to claim a 5-1 win over the Commodores. 

Tallahassee (35-5) has now won nine of its first ten Panhandle Conference games and increased its lead over second-place Gulf Coast State (26-11, 5-2) to 2.5 games. 

After dodging trouble early, Riley settled into a groove and limited one of the nation's top offensive lineups to just four hits over eight-plus innings. He carried a shutout into the ninth before Tyler Dial's leadoff homer put the Commodores on the board. 

Following Dial's tape-measure shot down the right field line, Riley handed things over to Victor Cole, who set down the Commodores in order and finished off the Eagles' sixth straight victory. 

"I can't say how big that was," said McLeod of Riley's performance. "We've been struggling to find a third starter who could go out and give us some quality innings. 

"It was humongous because it kept us from using our bullpen. We'll have a lot of arms available for the next two games." 

Riley (3-1) had only totaled five innings in his last three outings, but was in command from the outset on Friday. He retired the side in order in the first then showed his mettle over the next three frames, keeping Gulf Coast State off the board despite allowing a runner to get into scoring position with less than two outs in each inning. 

"I found out early on what pitches were working and how to attack the hitters," said Riley. "From there on, (Coach McLeod and I) developed a game plan and followed it." 

Following a two-out walk in the fourth to Tevin Johnson, Riley retired the next 13 batters he faced. That allowed the Eagles plenty of time to hit their stride against Gulf Coast State ace Brandon Leach. 

Leach held Tallahassee hitless through three innings, but Clay Fenwick led off the fourth with a single and later scored on John Price, Jr.'s one-out single. 

An inning later, the Eagles put three two-out runs on the board to give Riley a four-run cushion. 

Fenwick doubled down the left field line to score Anthony Torres from second with the first run of inning. With first base open, Gulf Coast State head coach Mike Kandler elected to play the percentages, walking Trent Higginbothem and his .403 batting average in order to get to Tyler York. 

But York, who brought a .200 average into Friday's game, delivered a two-run double to score Fenwick and Higginbothem and extend the Eagles' lead to 4-0. 

Tallahassee added an insurance run in the seventh when Higginbothem singled home Fenwick from second. 

The Eagles' 3-6 hitters – Fenwick (3-for-3, 3 R, RBI), Higginbothem (1-for-3, R, RBI), York (2-for-2, 2 RBI) and Price, Jr. (1-for-3, RBI) – accounted for all but one of Tallahassee's five runs and eight hits and recorded all five RBI. 

Leach (7-2), who lost for just the second time, struck out seven but was charged with five runs, eight hits and four walks. 

"We knew we were facing a good arm (Leach)," said McLeod. "He had some big strikeouts early to get out of some jams, but our guys never panicked and kept their poise. 

"But in this conference, you don't have a whole lot of time to enjoy a good win like this." 

Tallahassee and Gulf Coast State will continue their series in Panama City at 2 p.m. eastern Saturday before returning to Eagle Field for Monday's 5 p.m. finale.