Chipola Leads Panhandle Conference Baseball Race

The No. 7 nationally-ranked Chipola baseball team (No. 2 FCSAA/Region 8) improved to 4-1 in Panhandle Conference play and 23-7 overall with a 10-5 win over Pensacola, March 16.
  
Chipola’s Zac Rice hit a grand slam in the second inning for his first career home run. Drew Baker (6-0) earned the win with 7 strikeouts in 6 innings. Baker’s 60 strikeouts this season rank him among the top five in the NJCAA. Matthew Corlew was 3 for 5 with 2 RBIs. Alfonso Villalobos was 2 for 4 with one RBI.  
    
The Panhandle Conference standings as of March 18 are: Gulf Coast (1-0), Chipola (4-1), Pensacola (1-1), Tallahassee (1-4) and Northwest (0-1). 

The Indians play at Pensacola on March 18 before returning home to host the Pirates in a double-header on Saturday, March 20 at 1 and 4 p.m. Chipola also hosts Gulf Coast on Tuesday, March 23 at 5 p.m. and Thursday, March 25 at 5 p.m.

The Indians scored a 3-1 win over Tallahassee on March 9 and a 10-1 win over Tallahassee on March 11. 

The Indians are led at the plate by Marianna native Cameron Gray, who is batting .367 on the season. Gray, a sophomore, also leads the team in RBIs with 21.

The Indians ranked third in the NJCAA with 29 home runs on the season. Freshman switch-hitting infielder Paxton Tomaini leads the Indians with four.

The Chipola pitching staff is third in the country in strikeouts (283). Andrew Baker is 3rd in the NJCAA with 45 and Luis Guerrero is ninth with 40.  

For the latest news, visit chipolaathletics.com.