Sharks Drop Series Opener to Florida Southwestern, 9-1

The Miami Dade Sharks opened their series against Florida Southwestern State College with a 9-1 loss on Saturday, as the Bucs used a late offensive surge to take control of the game.

After five tightly contested innings, the game was tied 1-1 following a sixth-inning RBI groundout from Talan Beckford that brought home Cian Copeland. However, Florida Southwestern responded quickly and forcefully in the bottom half, scoring five runs to break the game wide open.

Jake Mueller started the rally with an RBI single, and back-to-back wild pitches allowed another run to cross. Nik Pereira followed with an RBI double, and Nathan Fink capped the frame with a two-RBI single to make it 6-1. Pereira struck again in the seventh, smashing another double to center field that cleared the bases and extended the Bucs' lead to 9-1.

Copeland and Michael Petite led the Sharks at the plate, each collecting two hits including a double. On the mound, Jack Garvey (3-4) pitched 5.2 innings, allowing just two hits but was charged with three earned runs. The bullpen couldn't stop the bleeding, giving up six more runs across the final 1.1 innings.

Florida Southwestern's Robert Mitchell (4-2) was sharp in his start, holding MDC to one run over six innings with five strikeouts.

With the loss, Miami Dade falls to 25-20 overall and 14-14 in conference play, while Florida Southwestern improves to 35-11 and 20-8. The series continues Saturday as the Sharks look to bounce back in Game 2.