MIAMI (April 7, 2015) – The Panthers' 3-4-5 hitters combined to go 8-for-10 with six RBI and six runs scored as the FIU baseball team (15-18) downed the USF Bulls (22-11-1), 13-7, on Tuesday evening at the FIU Baseball Stadium.
Junior
Edwin Rios went 2-for-2 with three RBI and three runs scored, while senior
Brian Portelli batted 4-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored and sophomore
JC Escarra hit 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored. The three combined for eight of the Panthers' 14 hits.
Rios reached base five times on the night with a double, a home run and three walks. The home run, a two-run shot in the bottom of the first, was the Orlando, Fla., native's team-leading 10
th of the year.
FIU used a total of five pitchers as freshman
Ian Exposito (1-0) picked up his first-career win, throwing two-thirds of an inning of relief. Junior
Charles Cormier threw three innings out of the bullpen to close out the game and earn the save. Cormier allowed no runs on one hit, while striking out three.
USF's Brandon Lawson suffered the loss, giving up four runs on eight hits in four innings of action. The Bulls were led by Levi Borders, who went 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored.
USF jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first before Rios' two-run shot pulled FIU within one. The Bulls tacked on a run in the second and third to take a 5-2 lead. FIU exploded for nine-unanswered runs with two in the bottom of the third and seven in the bottom of the fourth to take an 11-5 lead. The Panthers never looked back holding off the Bulls for the 13-7 win.
The Panthers will travel to Boca Raton, Fla., to take on the Florida Atlantic Owls in a three-game series this weekend. First pitch for Friday's series opener is set for 6:30 p.m. ET.
##### Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUBaseball) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUBaseball) for all the latest FIU Baseball news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics). #####About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium. About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida¹s anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu.
