BOCA RATON, Fla.- Lynn University's eighth-ranked baseball team (33-11) dropped the first game of a Sunshine State Conference series to No. 1 Tampa (43-2), 6-2, on Friday afternoon. The Fighting Knights fall to 15-7 in SSC play while Tampa improves to 18-1. Albert Lefran went 4-for-3 at the plate while Thomas Kain drove in the Blue & White's only runs on a double to left field in the bottom of the fifth inning. 

Jed Vandernaald (8-2) allowed seven hits and fanned four batters in six innings of work in his 13th start of the season. He allowed just one earned run, off a solo home run by Connor Obrochta in the top of the third inning. 
Lynn would take the lead on Kain's double in the bottom half of the fifth inning which scored Lefran and Michael Stemle for the Fighting Knights to take a 2-1 lead.

Bill Mendek came on in relief in the top of the seventh but ran into trouble when the Fighting Knights committed two errors with just one out. The second error of the inning would score Orlando Rivera to knot the game at 2-all. Stephen Dezzi tagged on a fly ball to right field to place runners in the corners for the Spartans and Michael Danner at the plate. A three-run home run by Danner would give Tampa a 5-2 before Mendek could escape the inning. 

UT added an insurance run in the top of the eighth on a single to left centerfield that scored Obrochta for a 6-2 lead. Lynn threatened in the bottom half of the inning when Alex Freedman led off the inning and reached on an error by the Spartans first baseman. Sal Giardina was struck by a pitch for the 13th time this season to place runners on first and second but consecutive groundouts by the Fighting Knights would leave the two seniors stranded on base. 

Kyle Butcher (1-0) tossed a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the ninth in his first appearance since returning from a stint on the DL. Mendek (5-3) allowed five runs, just one of which was earned, during two innings of relief in his third loss of the season. 

David Heintz picked up his eighth win for the Spartans to remain undefeated on the mound. He allowed two unearned runs while striking out six batters. Rivera went 3-for-5 at the plate with one run scored and an RBI while Danner batted 2-for-4 with three runs batted in.

The two top-10 teams will return to the diamond on Saturday, April 26, for the final two games of the SSC series. First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m. and Lynn will honor nine seniors in between games with Senior Day ceremonies. 

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