BOX SCORE
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The No. 17 Nova Southeastern baseball team (21-6, 6-3 SSC) won a close game against the Saint Leo Lions (19-13, 3-7 SSC), 3-1, Thursday to begin the Sharks’ Sunshine State Conference series at the NSU Baseball Complex.
The game highlighted a pair of sophomores from Weston, Fla., as both
Zachary Westcott and
Carlos Asuaje led the Sharks to victory. Westcott earned his eighth victory in eight appearances by pitching a complete game. It was his second nine-inning complete game of the season and the first in which he never allowed an earned run. He allowed only five hits and one walk in the contest while striking out five batters. Westcott cruised through the final innings as he kept his pitch count low, reaching exactly 100 pitches over 33 batters faced.
Asuaje had the first multiple home run game of his career and doubled his home run count for the season. He went 3-for-4 with two runs, two RBI and an intentional walk. Asuaje had three of the Sharks’ seven hits and was the only player to record multiple hits. Asuaje is now batting .476 on the season and is within five hits of batting .500 in 110 at bats.
The game developed into a pitching duel between Westcott and Saint Leo’s Rick Teasley. Both pitchers posted goose eggs on the board over the first three innings, before the Sharks allowed an unearned run in the fourth.
Asuaje put the Sharks on the board with his third home run of the season. As the leadoff hitter, Asuaje ripped the first pitch he saw past right centerfield. The Sharks picked up momentum off of Asuaje’s bomb and went on to score the go-ahead run in the inning.
Areo Regoli (Sr., Homestead, Fla.) drew one of his two walks on the night and stole second base.
Javi Sujo (Sr., Miami, Fla.) drove the centerfielder home on a single through the left side.
Teasley kept the Sharks at bay in all but one of his 6.2 innings pitched, but NSU was able to break him down and brought his pitch count to nearly 120 before the end of the seventh inning. Matthew Hewitt relieved Teasley and almost closed out the game unscathed. With two outs remaining in the bottom of the eighth, Hewitt gave up his only hit of the game, a home run from Asuaje. Asuaje drove the ball past right field on a no-doubt home run, bringing his season total to a career-high four homers.
Although the score was close, the Sharks were the much more active team offensively. The Sharks left 11 batters on base, more than double Saint Leo’s count.
The Sharks will finish their series against the Lions with a doubleheader Friday beginning at 1 p.m. at the NSU Baseball Complex.
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