CLEARWATER, Fla. — With their season on the line, Northwest Florida State delivered a resilient performance, fueled by timely hitting and a strong relief outing, to defeat #4 Indian River 8–4 Thursday morning in an elimination game at the FSCAA State Tournament.
FCSAA Player of the Year Sister Arnold led the charge at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a solo home run, two singles, and an RBI to spark the Raiders’ offense. Her fifth-inning home run sailed over the left-field wall, giving Northwest Florida a critical insurance run and continuing her postseason tear.
The Pioneers struck first in the top of the opening inning, capitalizing on aggressive base running with a double steal, plating the runner from third to take an early 1-0 advantage.
But the Raiders wasted no time responding. In the bottom half of the inning, Lulu Luedtke delivered a sharp single to center field that plated a run and tied the game. A second run came home shortly after, giving Northwest Florida a 2–1 advantage.
Indian River clawed back in the top of the third with an RBI single to center from Smith, evening the score at 2–2. However, Northwest Florida regained control in the bottom of the fourth. After Lillie Piersol showed great discipline at the plate and drew a bases-loaded walk to bring in the go-ahead run, Haley Hughes followed with a sacrifice fly to left, extending the Raiders’ lead to 4–2.
Arnold added to the cushion in the fifth with her solo homer, launching a no-doubter to left to put the Raiders up three. Then in the sixth, Falyn Beebe provided the dagger—crushing a three-run home run to straightaway center to make it an 8–3 ballgame. It was Beebe’s lone hit of the day, but it was a massive one, as she finished with a team-high three RBIs.
Cailyn Heyl picked up the win in relief, entering in the fourth inning and steadying the game. She tossed four innings, allowing four hits and two runs (one earned), while walking two. Mallory Baker started the game in the circle, giving the Raiders three solid innings, allowing two unearned runs on four hits without issuing a walk.
Offensively, Northwest Florida pounded out 10 hits on the day. In addition to Arnold’s three-hit performance, both Luedtke and Hayden Andrews finished with two hits apiece. Beebe, despite going 1-for-3, drove in three runs, all in the sixth inning.
On the other side, Indian River’s offense was led by Maximiliana, who went 2-for-4 at the plate. The Pioneers were aggressive on the basepaths all game long, racking up five stolen bases—including three from Phipps—but couldn’t generate enough consistent offense against the Raiders’ staff.
With the win, Northwest Florida stays alive in the state tournament and continues its push for one of two automatic NJCAA World Series bids. The Raiders will need to win their next three games, including two tomorrow, if they want to earn the auto-bid.
They’ll be back in action Friday afternoon at Noon (CDT) against the loser of Game 8 between (1) Florida SouthWestern and (4) Seminole State. If the Raiders win that matchup, they’ll return to the field under the lights for the 6:00 p.m. (CDT) nightcap, taking on the winner of Game 9.
