Box Score The third day of Florida baseball for Mount St. Joseph featured a matchup between the Lions and the Trine Thunder. Malik Zuberi (Cincinnati, OH / Lakota West) would be sent to the mound for the Lions as they would try to get back on track. His start would last just four innings, as he would give up six earned runs on seven hits.
Fortunately, the Lions were feasting on offense Wednesday afternoon. The scoring started in the second inning, when the Lions were able to take advantage of three Trine errors and put up three runs in the inning.
The Lions took advantage of more mistakes by Trine in the top of the third inning. Mount St. Joseph was able to work five consecutive walks off of Trine pitching, scoring two runs in the inning before the side was retired. Trine would come back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the third inning, bringing the score of the game to 5-2 in favor of the Lions.
Trine had a huge fourth inning, putting up five runs on the Lions in the frame. After the two teams would trade blows for the next few innings the Lions would start to turn things around. Timely pitching and great approaches from Mount St. Joseph hitters allowed the Lions to take the momentum late in the game.
Mike Hilliard (Loveland, OH / Clinton Massie) and Matt Hofmann (Cincinnati, OH / Elder) threw two scoreless frames in the eighth and ninth innings, respectively, giving the Lions the opportunity to take the game.
At the start of the eighth inning the score was all tied up at 10-10. That is when Mount St. Joseph's offense came alive again. They were able to put up two runs in the eighth inning, grabbing a 12-10 lead. Following the eighth inning they were able to come back with a five-run explosion in the ninth to effectively put the game out of reach.
LION AT THE PEAK:
Kyree Hawkins (Smyrna, GA / South Cobb) had a stellar game for the Lions for the second straight day. He followed up his two-hit performance on Tuesday with a four-hit performance against Trine on Wednesday. Along with going 4-5, Hawkins also had a team-high 4 RBIs, scored a run, and was able to work a walk.
UP NEXT:
The Lions have an off day on Thursday and then get back to action on Friday when they take on Washington (Mo.). First pitch is scheduled for 9:15 AM.
