MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Barry University’s baseball team swept a pair of games against Wisconsin-Parkside Saturday afternoon taking game one 22-4 before winning the nightcap 11-2.
Barry (11-2) had its offense in full swing from the start. The Buccaneers scored in nine of the 12 innings throughout the double-header, belting 25 hits in all on the day.
Game One
Sheehan Planas-Arteaga drove an opposite field homer to start the day in the bottom of the first inning to give Barry a 1-0 lead.
Wisconsin-Parkside (0-3) answered with three runs in the top of the second, but the Ranger’s lead was short-lived.
What followed was a 12 run outburst by the Bucs in the second inning; finally igniting an offense that has proven in the past to be one of the strongest in the south region.
Greg Brodzinski doubled to left-center to drive in Tyler Kellmann and Luis Rios-Reyes. Carlos Matamoros followed with a two-RBI double of his own to plate Brodzinski and Ramon Valdez.
J.C. Cardenas continued the onslaught with an RBI single down the right-field line. A few batters later, Rios-Reyes drove in two runs with a base-knock down the right-field-line. The rally continued and Brodzinski belted his second double of the inning, this time driving in three runs and the rout was on.
Barry belted 17 hits and scored in every inning of the run-ruled shortened game. Brodzinski led the Bucs offense with a perfect 5-for-5 performance including four runs scored and his eight RBI were just one off from the school record for RBI in a game.
Planas Arteaga also put together a flawless game at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a pair of RBI. Every starter in the Buccaneer lineup collected a hit. Valdez and Matamoros each finished with multiple hits as well.
Jesse Montalto (2-0) got the start for the Buccaneers and after the offense supported him with 13 runs in the first two innings cruised to his second win of the season. The right-hander allowed just three runs in 4.1 innings of work.
Blaine Duncan finished the game and struck out three in 2.2 innings of work in relief of Montalto.
Barry scored four runs in the third, one in the fourth, and two runs in each the fifth and sixth to total 22 in all. Brodzinski belted his first homer of the season in the seventh, a solo-shot to make it 22-4.
John Perez (0-1) did not make it out of the second inning and gave up 12 runs in 1.1 innings of work to pick up the loss for the Rangers.
Game Two
After putting up 22 runs in game one, Barry did not experience a let-down. The Bucs instead picked up right were they had left off. Planas-Arteaga drove in the game’s first run once again, this time with a single to plate Khalil Denson.
Adrian English followed with a two-RBI single to drive in Planas and J.C. Cardenas and Brodzinski capped the four-run rally with a sacrifice fly to left.
The offense carried over to the second inning as Cardenas initiated another rally with his RBI single through the left side. Later in the inning Kellmann doubled down the right-field line, picking up a pair of RBI.
Brodzinski, for the third time on the day, delivered another double adding two more to his RBI total and Matamoros made it an even ten runs for the Buccaneers with an RBI single to score Brodzinski.
Adrian Benitez (3-0) didn’t need much run support, even though Barry provided him with 11 runs in all, as he allowed just two runs in seven innings and tossed a complete game while striking out seven. Benitez kept getting stronger as the game wore on and saved his best for last, striking out the side in the final inning to earn the victory.
Cardenas finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Brodzinski chipped in three RBI and Kellmann and English added two RBI each.
The Buccaneers are riding a six-game winning streak and the now the offense is firing on all cylinders as they head into the series finale Sunday afternoon.
First pitch is scheduled for 12 noon with live-stats and video broadcast available through the Barry University athletics website, GOBARRYBUCS.COM.