Eagles win Panhandle Conference opener 8-3 over Chipola

TALLAHASSEE, FL (March 8^th, 2022) – The Eagles moved to 18-6 on the season and 1-0 in conference play on Tuesday night after an 8-3 victory over the Chipola Indians. Chipola entered the game as the number one-ranked team in Florida, and the number three team in the nation, according to the most recent NJCAA Division I poll. 

Ethan Firoved (Fr., LHP) made his fifth start in the season and went six strong innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits, while striking out eight and walking just two batters. After a two-run home run from Chipola in the bottom of the second gave them a 3-1 lead, Firoved pitched 4.1 shutout innings allowing just one hit. He earned his fifth win of the season.

In his last inning of work, Firoved started by striking out Chipola's Cam Collier. The next batter doubled but was later thrown out trying to steal third by his battery mate Ethan Krizen (So., C). After a mound visit from assistant coach Corey Pye, Firoved finished the inning by striking out David Castillo, and was met by several high fives and hugs from his teammates as he ran back to the dugout. 

"I had a tough time settling in at first," said Firoved, "and then I finally got my stuff together and felt good coming out of that sixth inning." 

Hunter Parris (So., LHP) entered the game in the seventh and pitched three scoreless innings to earn his first save of the season. He allowed just one hit and struck out five batters. 

Tallahassee finished the night with 11 hits, but the two biggest were the home runs from Andrew Fernandez (So., UTL) and Ziggy Thomas (Fr., OF). Marcos Dinges (Fr., OF) got the Eagles going with a one-out double. Fernandez, a switch-hitter came up to the plate in the bottom of the fifth with the game tied at three. Fernandez lined one over the right field wall to hit his team-high third home run of the season. The blast gave the Eagles their first lead of the night. 

The final blow came from Ziggy Thomas, when the left-handed hitter sent an outside pitch from a same-handed pitcher the opposite way for a three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning. It was his first of the season. 

"I haven't seen many lefties this year, and then he started me 2-0 and I saw it really well," said Thomas after the game, "then that one pitch on the outside corner I just did what I did, go oppo with it, stayed back and hit the ball well."

"These guys never quit," said assistant coach Corey Pye about the victory. Pye served as head coach for the game. "That's the one thing that we have figured out all year. It doesn't matter who we're playing, doesn't matter what inning. We always come back and battle and give our guys a chance."

The Eagles host Chipola again on Thursday for the second game in their conference schedule, before travelling to Marianna to take on the Indians in a doubleheader on Saturday.