Florida A&M third baseman Jared Jeffries turned a game-ending double play in the top of the ninth inning to clinch the baseball team's first win of the season, 6-5 over the Naval Academy Saturday afternoon at Moore-Kittles Field.Jeffries'defensive gem saved what might have been a heartbreaking collapse for the Rattlers (1-5), which led 5-1 after three innings and seemed to on their way to an easy victory.
Instead, the FAMU defense committed a season-high eight errors and slowly let the Midshipmen (1-1) back into the game.
Navy took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Renaldo Hollins scored from third on Mitch Harris' sacrifice fly to right field.
Florida A&M struck for four runs in the second inning to take control of the game. Anthony Mazzeo's RBI single scored Stanley Gnat to tie the score at 1-1, then Adam Gordon's bunt single later scored Anthony Mazzeo to give FAMU a 2-1 lead.
Patrick Brown pushed the lead to 3-1, when his grounder to short scored Corey McFadden, then Jeffries singled down the left field line, scoring Adam Gordon for a 4-1 cushion.
Mazzeo pushed FAMU ahead 5-1 in the bottom of the third, when his grounder to third scored Darryl Evans.
Continue reading:FAMU downs Navy
Rattlers down SC State in OT
The Rattlers had four players in double figures on the night. Leading the way for FAMU were senior center Rome Sanders with 21 points, while senior guard/forward Darious Glover tossed in 15 points, and junior guard Leslie Robinson and senior guard Brian Greene added 12 each in the victory.
The Rattlers improved to (14-11, 8-4 MEAC), while South Carolina State dropped to (9-14, 7-6 MEAC) putting themselves in a tough spot at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center Saturday night.
The Bulldogs blew a 16-point lead to give the Rattlers the victory in overtime.