Central Florida 5, Daytona State 2 (BASE)

Central Florida took back its share of first place in the Mid-Florida Conference on Friday, beating Daytona State 5-2 behind a masterful bullpen effort from Chris Labriola.

The Patriots (21-10, 6-2 MFC) avenged Wednesday's 5-4 loss at Daytona and tied the Falcons (12-10, 6-2 MFC) and Lake-Sumter in a three-way deadlock atop the conference standings with one-third of the MFC schedule in the books.

CF's offense managed to manufacture just enough runs to help Labriola construct an impressive victory. The Patriots scored twice in the first inning and plated a run apiece in the second, fifth and sixth frames. Paul Karmeris drove in 2 of the runs, while Dru Jones and Jordan Zech had 2 hits each.

But Labriola was the game's breakout star. The sophomore lefthander entered the game in the fourth inning and yielded almost nothing to the potent Falcons offense, allowing just 2 hits and striking out 3 over 6 shutout innings. Only two Falcons reached scoring position on his watch - one of them on an infield throwing error - and he retired Daytona in order three times, including the ninth.

CF's conference schedule continues Saturday with a visit to Santa Fe.

FSC-Jacksonville 8, Central Florida 0; FSC-J 11, CF 2 (SOFT)

Central Florida lost both halves of its first home Mid-Florida Conference softball doubleheader on Thursday, dropping two games to FSC-Jacksonville by scores of 8-0 and 11-2.

A Jessica Knight solo home run in the nightcap provided the day's offensive highlight for the Patriots, while Jessica Chewning drew a bases-loaded walk for the home team's other run in the late game. Katie Hayes picked up a hit in each game, while Kylie Ondriezek, Megan David, Megan Still, and Erin McMahan added a hit apiece on the day.

The Patriots (9-21, 0-4 MFC) again try for their first conference win on Saturday, hosting Lake-Sumter at 1 p.m.

CF Baseball Cracks National Top 25

The Central Florida baseball team has played its way into the national conversation, earning the No. 13 spot in the latest NJCAA Top 25 National Poll.

The FCCAA No. 2 Patriots failed to earn national notice with its 8-0 streak to open the season, but their strong start to Mid-Florida Conference play has attracted some well-deserved recognition. CF (20-10, 5-2 MFC) is tied for second in conference and has a good shot at making good on its ranking with a berth in the FCCAA State Tournament in May.

CF is the only MFC team and one of five Florida schools included in the top 25. FCCAA No. 1 Gulf Coast is sixth; State College of Florida-Manatee is 14th; Palm Beach is 22nd; and Miami-Dade is 24th.

Daytona State 5, Central Florida 4 (BASE)

Central Florida fell into second place in the Mid-Florida Conference on Wednesday, dropping a 5-4 decision at Daytona State.

The Patriots (20-10, 5-2 MFC) entered the game in a first-place tie with the Falcons (12-7, 6-1), and will have a chance to regain their share of the top spot when Daytona visits Goodlett Field on Friday to complete the home-and-home.

CF and Daytona, ranked second and 10th in the FCCAA coaches' poll, respectively, will likely battle all season for the conference crown. The two will also have to keep an eye on Lake-Sumter, which beat Seminole 8-5 on Wednesday and now sits tied with CF for second place in the MFC at 5-2. Only the top two finishers in the conference advance to the FCCAA State Tournament in May.

Paul Karmeris hit a 2-run home run, his second consecutive game with a deep ball. Reigning FCCAA Player of the Week Hunter Smith added a hit and an RBI, while Jordan Zech had 2 hits. Kyle Bright took the pitching loss.

Valdosta State Ousts Rollins, Wins First Regional Title

Former Patriots Ricardo Lewis and Marvin Dibble continue to help Valdosta State University reach unprecedented heights. The latest achievement: a 71-58 win over Rollins College on Tuesday night, delivering a South Region championship and the program's first appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament Elite Eight.

The Blazers advance to Springfield, Mass., where the DII champ will be determined. VSU plays Indiana (Pa.) on March 24, with just three wins separating it from a national title.

Patriots Jump to Second in FCCAA Baseball Poll

A blistering start to its Mid-Florida Conference schedule has elevated the Central Florida baseball team to the No. 2 spot in the FCCAA State Coaches' Poll, released Tuesday. The Patriots are joined in the top 10 by previously-unranked Daytona State, which has emerged as their primary MFC rival. The teams play each other twice this week, on Wednesday at Daytona and Friday at Goodlett Field.

The full rankings:

Rank Team (1st-place votes) Record Pts Pvs

1. Gulf Coast (12) 23-5 129 1t

2. Central Florida (1) 20-9 105 5

3. Palm Beach State 19-7 99 8t

4. State College of Florida (1) 17-7 97 4

5. Miami Dade (1) 20-5 74 1t

6. St. Petersburg 21-12 73 7

7. Chipola 16-13 68 8t

8. Tallahassee 16-9 31 10

9. Pensacola 17-10-1 24 6

10. Daytona State 11-7 23 --

Also receiving votes: Northwest Florida State 17, South Florida 11, Broward 9, St. Johns River 7, Polk State 3. Dropped out of rankings: No.3 Northwest Florida State.

CF's Hunter Smith Named FCCAA Player of the Week

Central Florida slugger Hunter Smith was rewarded for a stellar string of games at the plate on Tuesday, earning FCCAA Player of the Week honors. From the press release:
The sophomore second baseman keeps CF represented among the state's top players. Pitchers Matt Gendron and Megan Still were FCCAA Pitchers of the Week in baseball and softball last week.

Central Florida Community College’s Hunter Smith is this week’s FCCAA Baseball Player of the Week. Smith, a sophomore first baseman from Inverness, Fla., batted .619 (13-for-21, 1.047 SLG%) with five home runs and 15 RBI in five games. Smith enjoyed a pair of huge games offensively – three home runs and five RBI vs. Lincoln Land on March 9 and two home runs and six RBI vs. MFC foe St. Johns River on March 14. He also had at least two hits in all five games, scored two or more runs in his final four games of the week and has now recorded at least one RBI in eight straight games.

Central Florida 15, Seminole 5 (BASE)

Central Florida recovered nicely from its first Mid-Florida Conference loss, hammering Seminole 15-5 in 7 innings Monday at Goodlett Field and improving to 5-1 in the MFC.

The game was tight early as the Raiders scored a pair of runs in the top of the fourth to knot the game at 2. That's when the combustible CF offense unleashed one of its trademark huge innings.

Kenneth Stalls and Tito Mendoza walked to open the home half of the fourth, and leftfielder Shae Cothran ushered them home with a mammoth 3-run shot to right-center (click here for video of Cothran's home run). The Patroits tacked on 4 additional runs to blow the game open, scored 5 more in the following inning and Paul Karmeris scored the decisive run on an error after opening the seventh with a double.

Karmeris had a 3-run home run among his 3 hits and 4 RBIs, Bradley Goodson notched 2 hits and scored 3 runs and Dru Jones filled up the stat line with 2 hits, 2 runs and 2 RBIs. Michael Paulk pitched 6 innings for the win, yielding 5 runs on 6 hits with 5 strikeouts.

CF (20-9, 5-1 MFC) now enters a home-and-home with fellow conference frontrunner Daytona State. The Patriots travel on Wednesday and host the Falcons on Friday at 3 p.m.

Valdosta State Upsets No. 1 Arkansas Tech, Reaches DII Sweet 16

Valdosta State, featuring former Patriots Ricardo Lewis and Marvin Dibble, knocked off No. 1 Arkansas Tech on Sunday to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament. Next up is Rollins College on Tuesday at 9 p.m.

St. Johns River 14, Central Florida 8 (BASE)

Central Florida suffered its first loss of the Mid-Florida Conference season on Sunday at Goodlett Field, falling to St. Johns River 14-8.

Hunter Smith starred at the plate for CF, blasting 2 home runs and driving in 5. Reigning FCCAA Pitcher of the Week Matt Gendron, in his first start since no-hitting Lake-Sumter, took the loss on the mound.

It's a quick turnaround for the conference-leading Patriots (19-9, 4-1 MFC), who host Seminole on Monday at 3 p.m. at Goodlett Field. CF defeated Seminole 11-1 on Saturday. 

CF Alum Ricardo Lewis Powers Valdosta State in DII Tournament

Valdosta State won its first round game of the NCAA Division II Tournament on Saturday, beating Clark Atlanta 74-67. One of the heroes of the Blazers win was a point guard who once delivered his share of wins to our own Central Florida Patriots.

From the VSU Spectator:

Despite holding a 10 point lead midway through the second half, VSU found their lead at just two points with 3:34 to play. Two straight Ricardo Lewis field goals sprouted the lead back to six points, 69-63. “Huge,” (VSU coach Mike) Helfer said. “We need him to get going and get into that lane. I was just thankful that he took the shot.”

The Blazers, who also feature former Patriots Marvin Dibble, now advance to face Arkansas Tech, the No. 1 seed and the team that eliminated Valdosta from the Gulf South Conference tournament. That game is set for 9:30 p.m. EST tonight in Russellville, Ark. Check out the entire DII bracket here.

Seminole 2, Central Florida 1; Seminole 10, Central Florida 0 (SOFT)

Central Florida opened its Mid-Florida Conference season in heartbreaking fashion on Saturday, dropping a 2-1, 12-inning decision at Seminole. The Patriots also fell in the second half of the doubleheader, a 10-0 loss in 5 innings.

Reigning FCCAA Pitcher of the Week Megan Still was masterful in defeat in the opener, pitching 11 1/3 innings, striking out 5 and allowing just 5 hits and a single earned run. Jessica McClellan and Megan David produced a hit apiece, with McClellan driving in David for the team's lone run.

CF (9-18, 0-2 MFC) has the opportunity to correct its MFC path with an eight-game homestand against four different conference foes. That starts Thursday at 2:30 p.m. against FSC-Jacksonville, continues Saturday at 1 p.m. against Lake-Sumter and wraps up March 23 and 25 versus St. Johns River and Daytona State, respectively. 

Central Florida 11, Seminole 1 (BASE)

Central Florida continued its early dominance of the Mid-Florida Conference on Saturday with an 11-1 mercy-rule victory at Seminole.

The Patriots (19-8, 4-0 MFC) rode a familiar combination of masterful pitching and prolific offense to the impressive victory. CF has scored at least 9 runs in each of its conference games, and has allowed more than 4 runs only once. Overall, the Patriots have won their four MFC games by a combined score of 39-12.

Saturday saw sophomore Shawn Kale produce his finest effort of the season on the mound, striking out 11 while lasting all 7 innings. Offensively, Dru Jones went 3-for-5 with a home run and a double, Paul Karmeris went 3-for-5 with 2 RBIs and Bradley Goodson added a solo home run.

Early though it is, the Patriots have successfully built a cushion for themselves in the competitive MFC with one-sixth of the 24-game schedule in the books. CF is the conference's last unbeaten team, while 2-1 Daytona State is the only other MFC team with less than two losses. The Patriots have a quick turnaround for their next conference test, hosting St. Johns River on Sunday at 1 p.m. in a make-up of Friday's rainout.