Gainesville, FL - On Friday, the Saints faced off against the Polk State College Eagles for a doubleheader at home after losing to the Eagles on Thursday, February 15th in a close 6-4 game. The Saints won 6-1 in the first game and won the second game with a score of 7-1. The Saints record improves to 11-4. The first pitch was thrown by Harry Tholen, long time Santa Fe Saints Baseball coach. On Saturday, February 17th, the baseball field will be dedicated in Harry Tholen's name.

How It Happened

Game 1

Justin Jackson started on the mound for the Saints. He pitched seven innings, gave up six hits, and allowed zero earned runs. Jackson had seven strikeouts during his time in the circle.

At the plate, the Saints had nine hits, notable hits being a line drive single to center field by Javier Soto, a ball hit to the right field fence by BJ Graham for a double, and a hit and run single by Cory Filley to advance Wyatt Campbell to third in the bottom of the fourth inning. Campbell scored the first run of the game on a sacrifice fly to right field by Landon Rogers. In the bottom of the fifth inning, AJ Barrios hit a hard-hit ball past the pitcher and into center field to advance Grant Gallagher to second base. Wyatt Campbell then hit a line drive to center field to score Gallagher, taking back the lead 2-1.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Landon Rogers hit a solo home run to increase the Saints' lead. The team went on to score three more runs in that inning to increase the lead to 6-1.

Polk State College had six hits. Evan Wainman led the Eagles with two hits.

The final score of Game 1 was a 6-1 win.

Game 2

Matthew Jenkins started on the mound for the Saints and pitched 5.2 innings. He allowed two hits, zero earned runs, and had eight strikeouts. Macklin Miller and Lucas Johns followed him in the circle.

AJ Barrios, Grant Gallagher, and Cory Filley were the leading hitters for the Saints in Game 2. AJ Barrios had a total of three hits, while Grant Gallagher and Cory Filley had two hits.

Wyatt Campbell hit a crucial double in the third inning to send Grant Gallagher to third base. AJ Barrios then hit an RBI double, bringing home Grant Gallagher and Wyatt Campbell, scoring the first two runs for the Saints. Later in the game, Javier Soto hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning to lock in the lead for the Saints, improving the score to 7-1.

Trevor Caldwell started in the circle for the Eagles. He pitched four innings and allowed three hits, two earned runs, and had four strikeouts. Damion Kenealy, Liam O'Neil, and Pierce Glading were the leading hitters with one hit each.

The Saints had a total of nine hits and the Eagles had three hits. The final score of Game 2 was 7-1.

Next Up:

The Saints will travel to St. Johns River State College in Palatka, FL on Tuesday, February 20th. The first pitch will be at 4PM EST.