MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Barry University’s baseball team completed a four-game sweep of Wisconsin-Parkside Sunday afternoon with a 14-13, come-from-behind victory which ended on a 2-run walk-off homer off the bat Luis Rios-Reyes in the bottom of the ninth.
Barry (12-2) jumped out in front with three runs in the bottom of the first. Tyler Kellmann delivered a two-run single and Greg Brodzinski followed with an RBI single of his own to make it 3-0.
Wisconsin-Parkside (0-4) answered with three runs, two earned, in the top of the second to tie the game at three. The Bucs responded in the bottom of the frame with a four run rally capped off by Kellmann’s three-run bases-clearing triple to regain the lead. Rangers’ starter Christian Cardenas struggled to find the zone. The right-hander issued seven walks, two wild-pitches and a balk in 1.2 innings of work.
Wisconsin-Parkside reliever Joseph Plaud kept the Bucs hitters off balance, allowing only one earned run through the sixth inning and kept the Rangers in the game. The Rangers added six unanswered runs, four in the sixth and two more in the seventh to take a two-run lead, 10-8.
In the bottom of the seventh Barry responded with three runs to regain the lead. With Adrian English on second and Kellmann at first following a walk and a hit-by-pitch to start the inning, Brodzinski laid down a successful sacrifice bunt to advance both runners into scoring position. Back-to-back walks to Khalil Denson and Mike Diaz pushed a run across and pulled Barry within one run, 10-9. With one out and bases loaded Rios-Reyes gave the Bucs the lead with a two-run single to center field, scoring Denson and Kellmann and giving Barry an 11-10 advantage.
Tyler Petsch pitched a scoreless eighth and the Bucs added another insurance run in the bottom of the eighth on Kellmann’s sacrifice fly to left, his sixth RBI of the game, plating Sheehan Planas-Arteaga.
Joeanthony Rivera entered the ninth with a 12-10 lead, but struggled to find his command. The left-hander walked the first two hitters he faced and after a sacrifice bunt that moved the tying run into scoring position Kris Zarek singled through the left side to tie the game at 12. The Rangers took the lead on an error and led 13-12 going into the bottom of the ninth.
After Diaz’s one-out walk, looking to tie the game, coach Marc Pavao chose to pinch-run for Diaz with speedy Nick Turco in an attempt to manufacture a run, but Rios-Reyes took matters into his own hands.
Rios-Reyes blasted John Perez’s (0-2) first-pitch curveball over the left-field fence to win the game in walk-off fashion sending the Barry faithful into a frenzy with a 14-13 victory.
The Bucs managed just seven hits, but took advantage of 15 walks in the game. Kellmann finished 2-for-3 with six RBI, Rios-Reyes added a 3-for-4, four RBI game to lead the Buccaneers’ offense.
Planas-Arteaga, English and Brodzinski each added an RBI in the winning effort.
Zarek paced the Rangers going 2-for-3 with 4 RBI as the Rangers out-hit the Bucs 15-7.
Barry continues the current home-stand on Wednesday against Florida Tech in a regional, but non-conference matchup scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
Live-stat and video broadcast will be available through Barry University’s athletics website, GOBARRYBBUCS.COM., with Allan Cepeda on the call.