LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. (April 15, 2023) – On the final day of the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) Showdown in Lawrenceville, Ga., Florida National University’s baseball team was dominated by the No. 3 ranked Georgia Gwinnett College Grizzlies 18-1. The Conquistadors exit the tournament 2-1 after a couple of huge conference wins the previous day over Crowley’s Ridge College and Voorhees University.
The Grizzlies wasted no time displaying their absolute power on the diamond, picking up three runs and four hits at the bottom of the second. Starting pitcher Sair Sanchez was solid through the first inning collecting two strikeouts and one walk. But in the second, the freshman could not seem to keep GGC batters out of play.
Things went from bad to worse in the third, after a balk scored another Grizzly runner for the fourth run of the frame. The Conquistadors first hit of the contest came in the fourth courtesy of a single to third base from Nick Diaz. Gino Bellantoni followed suit with a single of his own but FNU could not string together a scoring run, retiring the side on a foul ball caught by the GGC catcher.
The Grizzlies rattled off eight runs and five hits over the next two innings for a commanding 16-0 lead. FNU avoided the shutout in the sixth on an RBI single from Bellantoni that scored Gregory Garcia for the lone FNU run of the afternoon.
A two-RBI single from GGC at the bottom of the frame solidified the 18-1 victory well before three quick Conquistador outs in the seventh called the game. The Conquistadors racked up three hits and one error while the Grizzles connected on 17 hits with no errors recorded.
Up Next: FNU baseball is back in action April 19 versus No. 10 Webber International in Babson Park, Fla.
