The College of Central Florida Patriots (8-10, 3-3) missed a prime opportunity to secure their second consecutive Citrus Conference series win, falling twice on the road to the State College of Florida Manatees.

"We gave ourselves the opportunity to win in both games, but we need to learn to close games out better." — Marty Smith, CF Head Coach

Game 1: Manatees 6, Patriots 5

Despite a powerful display at the plate, the Patriots were undone by a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh. CF hit four homeruns (all solo) in the first game of the day, but fell 6-5 when SCF's Holden Brauner singled home Ryan Kaitz for the walk-off win in the bottom of the seventh inning. Lance Hartley started on the mound for the Pats and went four innings allowing five hits, four runs with five strikeouts. Brett House hit two homeruns (3,4) while Jose Correa hit his third of the season and Talan Beckford connected on his fourth HR of the year.

Game 2: Manatees 12, Patriots 10

In a stunning turnaround, the Patriots saw a nine-run lead evaporate in the final innings. The Pats built a 10-1 lead in the sixth inning only to see the Manatees (10-7, 4-2) rally for one run in the sixth and ten runs in the bottom of the seventh inning for the 12-10 win. Jay Jung had a quality start for CF going 5.2 innings allowing 5 hits, 2 runs, 0 walks and 6 strikeouts. The Pats hit three more homeruns in this game with Bruno Schafer (2), Cal Johnson (4), and Victor Martinez (4) all going deep.

Upcoming Schedule

The Patriots are currently 8-10 on the season and 3-3 in Citrus Conference play. They will look to rebound at home on Tuesday, 2 PM against Tallahassee State College. They will begin their next Citrus Conference series at home on Thursday at 2 PM vs Daytona State. All home games are played at Goodlett Field on the CF campus in Ocala and are free to the public.