On Wednesday, the Florence-Darlington Technical College Stingers hosted Southeastern at Old Cormell Field and beat them 10-5.
The Stingers opened the first inning up by putting four runs on the scoreboard. In the second inning, the Stingers extended the lead to make the ball game 5-0, but by the third inning, Southeastern answered back with three runs. In the bottom of the fourth, FDTC scored two more runs to make the game 7-3. Southeastern tried to answer back by loading the bases in the fifth, but they were held scoreless until the seventh. In the end, the Stingers were able to add three more runs to the scoreboard to defeat Southeastern.
Rafi Vazquez earned the win after pitching on the mound for three innings. He allowed five hits and three runs, but he struck out four batters. Blake Whiting earned the save.
Dax Roper had two hits, including a two-run homerun. Grayson Cottingham and Ed’Zaviah Paul of Florence, South Carolina, as well as Connor Pett had two hits and two runs each.
“I was happy with our approach at the plate and how we competed,” head baseball coach Preston McDonald said. “We didn’t have a single 1-2-3 inning and scored in all but two innings. We struggled with our command on the mound. We struck out a bunch of guys, but we walked 10. We were pitching with guys on base all night. Luckily, we scored enough runs to keep it from being a close game late.”
The Stingers’ winning record improves to 5-2 with the home win. Beginning on Friday, February 16, the baseball team will host the Stinger Invitational at Sparrow Stadium located on the campus of Francis Marion University. The Stingers will play Patrick Henry at 4 p.m. on Friday. They will host Potomac State at 4 p.m. on Saturday, as well as Cecil later that evening at 6:30 p.m. To end the tournament, the Stingers will host East Georgia State at 3 p.m. on Sunday.
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