#TCCBaseball comes up short against Chipola

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (March 20, 2016) – Chipola College scored two runs in each of the first two innings and defeated Tallahassee Community College's baseball team on Sunday afternoon, 5-3.

Tallahassee (28-9, 2-3 Panhandle Conference) has dropped the first two games of the series and will try to avoid the sweep when the teams return to Marianna for the third and final game at 6 p.m. eastern Monday evening.

Chipola (25-9) is now 4-1 in PC play.

At the outset, and with the wind blowing out, it looked like offense would rule the day on Sunday.

After Chipola plated two runs in its first at-bat, Tallahassee answered and headed to the second with a 3-2 lead.

Mac Wilson led off the bottom of the first with a double to deep right field. Following a single by Zach Featherstone and a hit-batsman, the bases were loaded with nobody out.

Ethan Crout singled to center, scoring Wilson and Featherstone to tie the game. The next batter, Deyvid Silva, hit into a 5-4-3 double play, scoring Kyle Cavanaugh from third with the go-ahead run.

In the second, Wood Meyers' RBI-ground out tied the game and a perfectly executed double steal gave the Indians a 4-3 lead.

After a rocky start, Tallahassee starter Skylar Arias found his groove and retired the next 12 batters he faced and 20 of 21 overall, allowing only a leadoff single in the seventh.

Meanwhile, the Eagles went down in order only twice all day, but were unable to come up with the big hit after the three-run first.

Wilson hit into a double-play to end the second; Myron Mebane grounded into another, the third turned by Chipola, to erase a leadoff single in the fourth.

With two outs and runners at second and third in the sixth, Manny Chavarria struck out swinging. An inning later, Chipola reliever Landon Faulkner inherited a two outs, two on scenario and promptly struck out Crout to end the scoring threat.

Still trailing 4-3, Arias retired the first two batters in the ninth but Osik singled and Myles Edwards reached on a walk, prompting Tallahassee head coach Mike McLeod to call on his bullpen.

Brooks Buckler allowed a single to center and Osik crossed home plate just before Edwards was thrown out trying to reach third base.

Arias (4-1) took the tough-luck loss for Tallahassee, despite coming within one out of pitching his third straight complete game. He allowed only five hits and struck out six.

Crout was the only Tallahassee player with multiple hits, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs.