Gainesville, FL

NJCAA #18 ranked Santa Fe College Saints knocked off the #6 ranked Seminole State Raiders in a inning by inning thriller.  The rain make up game was originally scheduled for April 1st but was delayed to the end of April due to weather on April 1st.  Both teams had solidified their place in the FCSAA Division I Softball Championships next week in Clearwater, but the intensity both teams competed with was reflective of their national standings.  

The Raiders started the game with a run in the first but the Saints quickly answered in the bottom of the first with a McKenzie Jewell two run homer putting the Saints up 2-1.  The Saints held the Raiders scoreless in the top of two and Kelsey Harper singled to right to send Rylie Blankenship in to move the Saints lead to 3-1.  In the back and forth battle the Raiders got into the action again as they homered to left field tying the game at three.  In the top of six, a sacrifice fly gave Seminole a 4-3 lead in the top six and they held SF scoreless in the bottom of six.  But the Saints have been a late inning run producer all year. A walk by Conway put Olivia LaMeau at the plate where she executed a sacrifice fly to tie the game in the bottom of seven.  Ryleigh Bennett and Belle Mancillas held the Raiders at bay in the top of the eighth to put in motion the heriocs that would come in the bottom of eight.  With two outs and the bases loaded, Conway, who leads the FCSAA along with teammate Jewell in homeruns, stepped to plate and belted a grand slam to center field scoring Rylie Blankenship, Karris Rhine, and Kelsey Harper.  

The Saints had multiple contributions and showed off their versatility as Coach Savanah Webster was able to shift players into different positions and get solid contributions from each.  Madison Conway and McKenzie Jewell continued their friendly competition for the top of the leader board in the FCSAA as both hit homers against Seminole.  Conway was three for four on the day and drove in five runs.  Great pitching from Alexis Daphney who gave up no hits, Ryleigh Bauer, Ryleigh Bennett, and finally Belle Mancillas who finished the game and got the win demonstrated the Saints multiple threats in the circle and showcased how each delivers a tough pitch to hit.  Kelsey Harper had two hits of the Saints eleven and Cam VanGalder was patient at the plate and earned two walks. Rylie Blankenship stepped to plate three times and scored all three times as the slapper was patient and collected one base on balls and a hit.   

The Saints now go to 24-16 in the Citrus Conference and finish fourth, Seminole finishes 25-14 in third in the stacked conference.  The Citrus Conference boasts seven teams in the top 20 in the NJCAA national poll.  Santa Fe finishes fourth in the confernece behind #2 in the nation Florida SouthWestern, #4 in the nation Indian River, #6 Seminole, but in front of #8 in the nation Miami Dade, #15 Daytona State, #17 Eastern Florida.  The Saints are playing well at the right time as they finish in at #18 in this weeks national poll.  The Saints and the national powerhouse league will await the FCSAA seeding call to see where each team will be seeded for the FCSAA Division I Softball Championships, which promises to produce some of the top competition in the nation when you add Northwest Florida from the Panhandle Conference who is also nationally respected at #3.

More to come on the Saints journey to the FCSAA Division I Softball Championships.