FAU drops first conference series of the season The Owls, frustrated by missed opportunities, lost 4-3 loss to the Blue Raiders on Sunday afternoon. The loss marks the first conference series defeat of the season for FAU. Florida Atlantic (16-11, 7-5) had a pair chances to get on the board with runners on second and third with nobody out in the fourth and sixth innings. However strikeouts by Andy Mee, Dan Scheffler and Mike Albaladejo caused FAU to come up empty on both occasions. “We get into the lows and we can’t seem to drag ourselves out of them”, said coach John McCormack. “For some reason we haven’t been able to get everybody on the same page.” Part of the frustration was due to the MTSU pitching staff, led by starter Eric Gilley (3-0) who earned his third victory of the season. The right-hander pitched five shutout innings and gave up three hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Middle Tennessee (18-10, 7-5) struck first in the top of the third inning with back-to-back RBI singles by Tyler Burnett and Zach Hudson to give MTSU a 2-0 lead. A pair of doubles in the fifth by Ryan Ford and Zach Hudson led to two more Blue Raider runs which extended the lead to 4-0. The Owls tried to rally, scoring three runs in the ninth inning, but a Mike Albaladejo pop up with two outs ended the threat with the tying run stranded at third base. “I look at FAU and they had opportunity after opportunity and I know they have to be very disappointed in their production,” said MTSU coach Steve Peterson. Kevin Alexander (3-3) did not make it out of the fifth inning and suffered his third loss of the season. The freshman right-hander lasted just 4.1 innings pitched and gave up nine hits and four earned runs with no walks and no strikeouts. R.J. Alvarez pitched well in relief. FAU will be back in action on Tuesday when they play the first of a two-game series against Miami in Boca Raton. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the FAU Baseball Stadium. Box Score Coaches Comments Discussion
