Simpson Stifles Polk State, Saints Blast Four HR in 10-1 Victory

February 1, 2012

February 1, 2012 Contact: Scott Jamison 352-395-5616 scott.jamison@sfcollege.edu

SF BASEBALL

SIMPSON STIFLES POLK STATE, SAINTS SMASH FOUR HOMERUNS IN 10-1 VICTORY

Gainesville, FL – Freshman pitcher JT Simpson (1-0) gave up just one run in his first collegiate start, scattering six hits over five innings of work against Polk State College in FCSAA #2/NJCAA #9 Santa Fe's home opener. The victory moves SF to 4-0 on the young season.

Four Saints hit homeruns, giving Simpson and the bullpen plenty to work with. Dylan Barrow, Josh Larson and Caleb Denmark combined to shut the Eagles down over the final four innings, allowing just three hits.

"Our pitchers did a nice job today keeping the ball down, allowing our defense to make plays for them," said SF coach Johnny Wiggs. "JT made one bad pitch in the first inning with two outs, but besides that we hit our spots and were very effective."

Third baseman Graham Ramos continued his torrid pace, going 2-for-3 with a homerun and three RBI. He is now 11-for-17 with a homerun and eight RBI in four games. Outfielder Trey Griffin (2), second baseman Shane Kennedy (1) and designated hitter Caleb Denmark (1) also homered.

Polk State struck first, scoring their only run of the game in the first on a two out RBI double in the top of the first inning. From there it was all Santa Fe.

The Saints countered Polk's run in the first with three of their own on RBI singles by Drew Doty and Graham Ramos and an RBI double by Shane Kennedy to make it 3-1.

Eagles' starter Alex Norris settled in over the next 2.2 innings, getting eight consecutive Santa Fe players out. Caleb Denmark ended the Saints slump with a line drive homerun to left center for the 4-1 SF advantage.

In the fifth inning the Saints broke the game open with a pair of homeruns, first a two run shot by Ramos that was followed immediately by a Trey Griffin round tripper to push the lead to 7-1.

Santa Fe added an insurance run in the sixth on an RBI single by Doty and two in the seventh one on a deep homerun by Kennedy and the other on a sacrifice fly by Lawrence Pardo.

Doty finished 3-for-5 with two RBI, two runs and a stolen base, Ramos was 2-for-3 with a homerun and three RBI, Kennedy finished 2-for-4 with a double, a homerun and two RBI and Caleb Denmark was 2-for-4 with a homerun and an RBI.

"Our lineup from top to bottom today did a good job hitting the ball," said Wiggs. "We have guys with a lot of power, but we can also manufacture runs as well. I was pleased with our execution."

The Saints have outscored their opponents 42-8 and have seven homeruns through the first four games of the year.

Next up is a trip to Avon Park on Saturday, February 4 for a double header against South Florida CC at 12:00 PM. The next home game for the Saints is February 10 against Indian River at 3:00 PM.

For complete schedules and more information on Saints Baseball, please visit santafesaints.com. To see game photos and other updates, follow Santa Fe College Athletics on Facebook.

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