#TCCSoftball’s season ends at FCSAA Tournament

VERO BEACH, Fla. (April 28, 2017) – Marty Pasqualini beat out an infield single in the bottom of the tenth, allowing the game-winning run to score from third and give Region 8 No. 10 Palm Beach State College a 3-2 victory over Tallahassee Community College (21-25) in an elimination game at the NJCAA District/FCSAA State Softball Tournament on Friday. 

The Eagles fell into the loser's bracket following an 8-0 loss to NJCAA No. 4/Region 8 No. 2 Florida SouthWestern State College earlier on Friday. 

Against Palm Beach State, the Eagles carried a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth but allowed two runs, including one that was unearned, and was eventually down to their final three outs before rallying to send the game to extra innings. 

Alycia Smith and Cassidy Strickling led off the seventh with consecutive bunt singles, the latter advancing Smith all the way to third. After a wild pitch advanced Strickling to second, Kristin Gunter's sac-fly advanced both runners, scoring Smith to tie the game at 2-all. 

Tallahassee, however, couldn't get Strickling home with the go-ahead run and missed another opportunity to take the lead in the eighth. 

Samantha Malik led off the inning with a walk and advanced to third when a pickoff attempt sailed high at first, but a ground out, pop out and fly out kept the score knotted at 2-2. 

Meanwhile, Tallahassee starter Raya Moncus (11-13) pitched a 10-inning complete game and allowed only six hits. She pitched her way out of potential game-ending situations in the seventh and ninth innings, leaving the winning run stranded in scoring position in both, before the Panthers broke through for the game-winner in the tenth. 

Moncus also started and went five innings in the morning loss to Florida SouthWestern. 

Three errors directly resulted in the Buccaneers' first three runs of the game, two in the third and one in the fourth – all with two outs. 

Florida SouthWestern strung together three hits in the fifth, adding two more runs for a 5-0 lead. Callie Paine replaced Moncus in the circle to start the sixth and allowed three runs to end the game via the mercy rule. 

Tallahassee had at least one base runner in each inning against the Buccaneers' duo of Giovanna Watts and state pitcher of the year Courtney Gettins, but the Eagles went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position. 

The timely hit escaped Tallahassee in the loss to Palm Beach State as well, going hitless in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring position and stranding ten runners. 

Casey Durham was 1-for-3 with an RBI against Palm Beach State. Gunter was credited with the Eagles' other RBI while Strickling and Smith scored the runs for Tallahassee. 

Against Florida SouthWestern, Malik was 2-for-3, the only multi-hit performance in either game for the Eagles.