Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics
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North Florida
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Sacred Heart Drops Game Two of the Series to North Florida
2/14/2026 7:42:00 PM | Baseball
In the second game of both the season and the series, Sacred Heart started strong before North Florida pulled away late.
In the second, JW Fitzgerald sparked the offense with a clean single. Dave Yorke followed with a clutch double that drove Fitzgerald home, giving Sacred Heart the early lead and energy in the dugout.
An inning later, the Pioneers struck again. Jack Birtwell lined a single to left, and Chuck Tallman delivered the big swing — a two-run homer that brought Birtwell home and pushed Sacred Heart in front 3–0. Through three innings, the momentum belonged to Sacred Heart.
North Florida answered in the bottom of the third with a seven-run surge that flipped the scoreboard. They added two more in the fifth and broke it open with six in the seventh, eventually pulling away for a 16–3 final.
Despite the result, Sacred Heart showed fight. The early execution at the plate set the tone, and in the eighth inning Christian Trantino battled on the mound, striking out two hitters and continuing to compete until the final out.
The final score read 16–3, but Sacred Heart's early fire and resilience throughout reflected a team that kept pushing, even when the momentum shifted.
Top Performers
Chuck Tallman: 1-2, 2 RBI, HR
Dave Yorke: 1-4, RBI, 2B
Jack Birtwell: 2-3, R
Mitch Hawkins: 2.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 3 SO
Christian Trantino: 1.2 IP, 2 H, R, 2 SO
Up Next
The Pioneers head back to Dusty Rhodes Field for an 11:00 a.m. first pitch on February 15, looking to claim the series.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: STONE, Dakota (1-0)
L: Peterson, Jon (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Yorke, Dave 1
HR: Tallman, Chuck 1
RBI: Tallman, Chuck 2 ; Yorke, Dave 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Tallman, Chuck 1 ; Fitzgerald, JW 1 ; Schmutz, Jacob 1
SB: Link, Peter 1
HBP: Cook, Will 1
Batting:
2B: ALFORD, Seth 1 ; FARNER, Mathew 1 ; BENJAMIN, Sean 1
HR: ALFORD, Seth 1 ; FARNER, Mathew 1 ; SCHRAFFT, Jackson 1
RBI: COLLINS, Mitchell 2 ; ALFORD, Seth 2 ; FARNER, Mathew 2 ; TOBERMAN, Jackson 1 ; ORDONEZ, Santiago 1 ; WHITE, Carter 1 ; SCHRAFFT, Jackson 5 ; BENJAMIN, Sean 2
Base Running:
RUNS: COLLINS, Mitchell 2 ; ALFORD, Seth 2 ; FARNER, Mathew 2 ; TOBERMAN, Jackson 1 ; HOSEY, Boone 2 ; ORDONEZ, Santiago 1 ; RUREY, Beau 1 ; WHITE, Carter 2 ; SCHRAFFT, Jackson 2 ; BENJAMIN, Sean 1
SB: COLLINS, Mitchell 1 ; WHITE, Carter 1
HBP: FARNER, Mathew 1 ; ORDONEZ, Santiago 1 ; BENJAMIN, Sean 1
