MIAMI – The FIU Baseball program heads up to Daytona Beach Tuesday night for their first midweek matchup of the season, taking on the Bethune Cookman Wildcats from Jackie Robinson Ballpark at 6 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 20 vs Bethune Cookman
FIU is coming off a season-opening sweep of the LIU Sharks, outscoring their opponent, 45-15, in the three-game span from FIU Baseball Stadium.
The Panthers held on for a comeback 6-4 victory on Friday, Feb. 16 before cruising in the Saturday doubleheader with a 20-7 and 19-4 win over the NEC foe.
WILD, WILD, WEST
It was one weekend for the ages for
Brylan West, who made a statement in his Panthers debut.
The Tampa, Fla. native had 10 hits in his first 12 at-bats, while hitting a perfect nine-for-nine in Saturday's doubleheader. Overall, West logged a total of 9 RBIs, 2 HRs, and 3 doubles.
In game one on Saturday, West went 4-for-4 with a two-homer out to right centerfield before tacking on a RBI double and single.
Game two's performance was a standout 5-for-5 game, bringing home four RBIs including a three-run homer and two-run double down the left field line.
MAKE IT RAIN HOMERS
The ball was carrying out well for FIU on Saturday, hitting a total of eight home runs in the combined doubleheader, five in game one and three in the nightcap.
Already five players (
Armando Becerra,
Ryne Guida,
Jeff Liquori,
Alex Ulloa, and
Brylan West) have put the ball over the wall with three Panthers notching multi-HR efforts (Liquori, Ulloa, and West).
HITS GALORE
The bats did not cool off one bit in the opening weekend as the team 42 hits total over three games total.
Five Panthers have logged five or more hits in the opening series (Becerra,
Chase Engelhard, Liquori, Ulloa, and West).
In addition, FIU added seven doubles to their resume as West led the squad with three doubles while Engelhard sits with two.
PITCHING SETS THE TONE
Seven pitchers threw scoreless appearances against the Sharks led by
Logan Runde's four scoreless innings in relief on Friday night's 6-4 win, setting the tone for the comeback. The Peosta, Ia native allowed just one hit and struck out five batters.
Veterans
Orlando Hernandez earned the win in game one Saturday with three scoreless inning of work and three strikeouts. Miami native
Kevin Martin gave up zero hits to the Sharks in game two of action.
Southpaw Ryan Cabarcas earned the save Friday night, shutting down the LIU bats in two innings of relief.
Joel Pineiro got the start in game two on Saturday, allowing just one earned run over three frames.
Freshmen
Tristan Dietrich and
Evan Alwine closed out each game of the doubleheader with scoreless work, while senior
Zac Lampton threw a pair of no-run baseball in game one Saturday,
FRESH FACES
The 2024 roster features 22 newcomers for FIU including six freshmen to bolster the roster.
Notable key additions in DII transfer
Jeff Liquori who play various positions across the field. Seminole State College transfer
Kishon Frett will be a key power bat in the Panthers lineup, alongside South Florida State College transfer
Brylan West, and Erskine transfer
Armando Becerra. In the infield, Miami Dade CC transfer
Alex Ulloa is projected to play shortstop, while Tulane transfer
Chase Engelhard will get looks at second.
On the mound, JUCO additions
Logan Runde and
Ryan Reyerson will be pivotal pieces on the bump while freshmen
Tristan Dietrich and
Evan Alwine will get looks on the mound across the season.
MLB CONNECTIONS
FIU has multiple MLB connections on their roster as pitcher
Orlando Hernandez is the son of 4x World Series Champion Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez and nephew of Marlins 1997 WS Champion Livan Hernandez.
Pitcher
Joel Pineiro is the son of 12-year MLB veteran
Joel Pineiro.
Pitcher
Owen Puk is the brother of current Marlins relief pitcher AJ Puk.
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
Bethune Cookman comes into the contest with a 2-1 record after securing a series victory against Stonehill over the weekend, winning 7-1 and 12-1 on Friday before dropping an 8-7 decision on Saturday.
Offensively, Garrett Chun led the way for the Wildcats, going 5-for-9 with six runs driven in including a triple. Junior Sergio Rivera added in with five hits alongside three RBIs and a 3B.
On the bump, all three weekend starters went five innings or more as Tanner Boccabello was the standout, going seven no-run innings and struck out seven.
Marcos Gamboa and Daniel Gaviria combined for 10.2 innings, allowing four runs and struck out five.
Tuesday's contest will mark the 70
th meeting between the two schools dating back to 1983. FIU has the 55-15 edge winning the last 10 consecutive matchups. The Panther's last trip to Daytona Beach came on May 3
rd, 2023 in a 7-6 decisive victory.
UP NEXT
FIU host ACC foe in the Notre Dame Fighting Irish for a four-game set, beginning on Friday, Feb. 23 with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m.. It can be streamed on ESPN+.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Instagram (
@FIU.Baseball), Twitter
(@FIUBaseball), and Facebook (
Facebook.com/FIUBaseball) for all the latest Baseball news.
General athletic news can also be found at
@FIUSports on Facebook and
@FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram
