Header pic: Boris Villa – Credit: Florida Tech Athletics
Florida Tech pitcher Boris Villa allowed two runs in seven innings and the Panthers offense pounded out 19 hits in a 16-2 win over Chestnut Hill on Friday at Seminick-Hall Field.
Every Panthers starter got in the hit column in this one, led by a 4-for-6 night from Jakob Newton, who drove in three RBIs and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.
Villa, who has struggled in the early going allowed two runs on six hits in seven innings. He walked one and struck out 10, throwing 58 of his 87 pitches for strikes. According to Florida Tech Stats & Info, it is the first 10 strikeout game for a Panther pitcher since 2019
.@BorisVilla1 tonight had the first 10+ strikeout game for a @FloridaTechBB pitcher since @Marzheuser struck out 10 against Georgia College on March 29, 2019. pic.twitter.com/IcIv4kbxmL
— Florida Tech Stats (@FTStatsInfo) March 5, 2022
The Panthers (13-5) scored early in this one, putting two runs on the board in the bottom of the first against Griffins’ starter Thomas Hughes. Dylan Dohanos and Jack Nagy each singled and moved up on a wild pitch. Brett Parrish doubled later in the inning to bring them both home.
They would add three more in the second. Paul Castillo singled and Hayden Kimball walked to start the inning and would both move up on another wild pitch. Sam Schner’s sacrifice fly made it 3-0. Newton singled later in the inning to bring Castillo home and the third run would score on a wild pitch, putting the home team up 5-0.
Tech added a run in the fifth on Castillo’s single up the middle that scored Dylan Owens. Owens had started the inning with a double.
Any thought Chestnut Hill (1-4) had of a comeback was blown out of the water in the bottom of the sixth against two Griffins relievers. Nagy was hit by a pitch and Newton and Parrish singled to load the bases. Another hit-by-pitch made it 7-0 and Eldridge and Castillo hit consecutive two-run doubles and just like that it was 11-0.
Kimball’s base hit brought Castillo home to make it 12-0 and Kimball would move 180 feet on two consecutive wild pitches. He scored on an infield single by Schner, capping a seven-hit, seven-run inning.
Villa came out for the seventh and Chestnut Hill finally solved him for two runs. An RBI triple by John Contoudis and an RBI groundout by Andrew Dietz accounted for the runs.
The last three Panther runs came in the bottom of the eighth. Newton had a two-run double and Luca Wentzel had a sac fly, making it 16-2.
For more info: Chestnut Hill @ Florida Tech Box Score
The series continues Saturday with a 1:00 p.m. start.