MIAMI – The FIU baseball program used a five-run sixth inning to secure a 7-4 victory over Holy Cross on Friday night at FIU Baseball Stadium.
After falling behind 3-0 in the first inning, FIU (4-1) chipped away with two runs in the fourth before erupting in the sixth to claim its fourth straight win. Holy Cross (0-4) struck early against
Jeremy Urena, plating a run on an RBI groundout before adding a two-run homer to right field to take a 3-0 lead.
FIU answered in the fourth when
Cole Cleveland led off the inning with an infield single. Two batters later,
Samuel Fischer launched a two-run homer to right — his first career home run — cutting the deficit to 3-2.
The Crusaders extended their lead to 4-2 on an RBI triple, but the Panthers responded decisively in the sixth.
After Cleveland reached on an error and
Aidan Cohall singled to right to put runners on the corners, Fischer lined a single to center to score Cleveland, trimming the margin to 4-3.
Hector Candelas followed with an RBI single to tie the game at four.
Following a
Vicente Feliciano walk,
Cooper Rasmussen was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to give FIU its first lead of the night at 5-4.
Andrew Ildefonso added insurance with a two-run single up the middle, extending the advantage to 7-4.
The bullpen shut the door from there.
Tyrus Riley and
Bryce Turner combined for 4.1 hitless innings with six strikeouts to secure the series-opening win.
Urena made the start, tossing 4.2 innings while allowing three earned runs and tying a career high with seven strikeouts.
Riley earned his first win as a Panther, throwing 2.1 scoreless, hitless innings with four strikeouts. Turner recorded his first save of the season, pitching two scoreless frames to close the game. FIU totaled 13 strikeouts on the night.
Offensively, the Panthers recorded seven hits. Fischer led the way with a career performance, reaching base three times with a home run, single and three RBI.
Marc Hersh and Ildefonso also added base hits.
UP NEXT
FIU prepares for a doubleheader vs Holy Cross on Saturday, Feb. 21. First pitch for game one is set for 2 PM and can be streamed on ESPN+. Game two will follow 45 minutes following the conclusion of game one.
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