MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga | Georgia College & State University dropped its first two baseball games of the season to No. 1 University of Tampa Friday (Jan. 30) at John Kurtz Field.
The Bobcats lost the season opener 15-1 and the nightcap 3-1. GCSU fell to 0-2 while Tampa improved to 2-0. The Bobcats return with a contest against Albany State University Tuesday (Feb. 3) at 5 p.m. in Albany, Georgia.
The Spartans jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the first inning of the first contest, and continued to add on in each inning aside from the fifth inning. The Bobcats' sole run in the contest came from a sacrifice fly from Cole Huddleston to score Ty Petrovich. Tampa's Jesse Ponce hit the first home run of the season for the squad in the sixth.
Robert Satin (1-0) gave the Spartans four shutout innings, only giving up one hit.
Rand Bestermann led the Bobcats on the offensive, collecting a pair of hits, with one going for extra bases. Petrovich, Carson Vick, Luke Boone, and Evan Cowan each added a hit.
Tampa once again put up a three-spot to lead off the second game; however, the Bobcats kept them scoreless for every consecutive inning. Keagan Baxter drove Petrovich on a groundout for the first GCSU run in the game.
The Bobcats brought the tying run up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth but could not come through.
John Luke Glanton (1-0) came through with the win against his old team on four shutout innings and six strikeouts. Sammy Beir collected his first save of the season.
Cowan and Vick each had an extra-base hit in the nightcap contest, with Cowan going 2-for-4.
About GCSU Athletics
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among all public colleges and universities in Division II for five consecutive academic years, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won six consecutive Presidents' Awards for Academic Excellence, and are two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup and four-time winners of the PBC Institution of the Year Sportsmanship Award. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in postseason competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics embodies the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life." Sign up at @GCSUBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports or subscribe to the GSCU Athletics e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and to interact with GCSU Athletics.
