Baseball’s hot offense continues in Florida with 10-2 win at NSU

Davie, Fla. —- The Catawba College baseball team's offense stayed hot through the first two games of the season, defeating 2016 NCAA Division II national champion Nova Southeastern 10-2 on Friday night in non-conference action.

TEAM STATS

- Catawba out-hit Nova Southeastern 11-5

- The Catawba Indians recorded the only extra-base hits of the game – a double and a triple

- The Sharks committed the lone error of the game

- NSU left eight runners on base; Catawba stranded 10 runners

- The Catawba Indians recorded all six stolen bases on the night

- Catawba's pitchers allowed two runs on five hits, striking out 10 and walking five; Nova Southeastern's staff allowed nine earned runs on 11 hits, striking out eight and walking seven

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

- Cooper Bryson went 2-for-4 with a career-high four RBI and a run scored

- Ty Hubbard added three hits, three runs scored and a stolen base

- Dylan Driver had a 2-for-6 night with an RBI triple and a steal

- Sam Hunter drove in a run on a single, scored twice and stole three bases

- Payne Stolsworth impressed in his Catawba debut, tossing six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and three walks, while striking out seven

- Casey Gouge earned the save by finishing the final three innings, allowing two runs in the ninth

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST INNING

- Catawba loaded the bases with two outs, but the Sharks got out of the jam to keep the game scoreless

FOURTH INNING

- Hubbard singled and stole second to open the fourth inning

- Jackson Price doubled to right field to score Hubbard and give Catawba the early lead

- Bryson and Price would later score on wild pitches, taking a 3-0 lead after four

FIFTH INNING

- NSU retired the first two batters in the fifth, but the Catawba Indians rallied, as Cole Hales and Hubbard singled

- After a wild pitch moved both into scoring position, Bryson singled up the middle to score both, extending Catawba's lead to five runs

SIXTH INNING

- Drew Robertson walked to lead off the inning, then Driver's triple drove him in

- Hunter reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Driver from third

- Hunter stole second and third before scoring on a passed ball to give the Catawba Indians a commanding 8-0 lead

- With runners on the corners and two out, Stolsworth ended his night with a punchout, his seventh of the night 

EIGHTH INNING

- Bryson added to the Catawba lead in the eighth, scoring Hubbard and Hunter, holding a 10-0 advantage

NINTH INNING

- NSU scratched across two runs on back-to-back singles in the ninth, but Gouge closed the door with a fly-out to center to earn the save and move Catawba to 2-0 for the third time in the last four years

UP NEXT

- The Catawba Indians close out their Florida trip on Saturday, facing Barry. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.