Sharks Fall 6-3 Despite 10-Hit Effort at Eastern Florida

Melbourne, FL - The Sharks dropped a tight one on the road Sunday afternoon, falling 6-3 to Eastern Florida State College despite outhitting the Titans 10-9 in Game 1.

Miami Dade struck first in the opening frame when Miguel Colmenares lifted a fly ball to left that brought home Jendy Gonzalez for an early 1-0 lead. Eastern Florida answered immediately, as Bryce Jackson doubled to left to even the score at 1-1 after one.

The game shifted in the third inning. Eastern Florida pushed across three runs, capitalizing on timely hitting and a Miami Dade error to take control. The Titans added two more in the fourth with one scoring on a wild pitch and another on a fielder's choice, extending the lead to 6-1.

Luke Helms took the loss after allowing four runs over 2.1 innings of work. Magdiel Estevez, Jordan Bermudez and Jose Villegas combined to stabilize things out of the bullpen, with Villegas tossing 2.1 scoreless innings to keep the Sharks within reach.

Offensively, Miami Dade continued to battle. The Sharks collected 10 hits on the afternoon, with Samuel Castro and Leamsi Montañez each recording two hits. Montañez delivered an RBI double in the sixth inning, while Adrian Areizaga and Colmenares each drove in a run. Willy Mendez, Castro and Montañez all added doubles.

Miami Dade trimmed the deficit to 6-3 with single runs in the fifth and sixth, but Eastern Florida's bullpen shut the door late. Couper Gatch recorded the final four outs to secure the save and seal the victory.

Defensively, the Sharks turned two double plays but were hurt by two errors that led to key Titan runs.

Miami Dade will look to regroup and bounce back in Game 2 later today.