MIAMI, FL – While attempting to sweep the ranked Hilltoppers, FIU found themselves in an early hole. In the end, it was outfielder Kishon Frett who was the hero. With his 17th home run of the season, the Panthers sent Western Kentucky packing by a score of 7-5.
“We just never gave in the whole day,” said FIU head coach Rich Witten postgame. “Anytime we had a chance to limit damage or keep ourselves in the game, we did that. Even when they extended the lead once or twice, we immediately fought back and got the game close or tied it up a couple of times…”
“We had some guys step up, and it wasn’t perfect, you know, but they really competed and left it all out there and gave us a chance to go up there in the bottom of the 10th and win. When we got our first two guys on there, and turned it over to Brylan, Kish, and the middle part of our order, we were gonna like our chances.”
In the top of the tenth inning, WKU took a 5-4 lead thanks to a solo home run. In the bottom frame, FIU went with pinch hitters Hector Candelas and Albert Serrano. Both were hit by pitches, setting up Brylan West, who flew out deep to the center field warning track.
Making It Count This Time
Frett found himself in a similar situation to Wednesday night’s game against Miami. Back then, he had the chance to walk it off for his team in the bottom of the ninth, but struck out on a full count.
On Sunday, he didn’t miss out on the opportunity. On a 2-1 count, Frett hit a 111 mph homer to left center field.
“Watching Brylan’s at-bat right before mine, I learned a lot,” said Frett on the ESPN+ broadcast. “They pitch us pretty similarly. Seeing that he had succeeded and had a good piece, he just returned and told me to hunt the fastball. I hit the first one foul, but I got a good barrel and I hadn’t had a good barrel all week, so it felt good, and then he threw another slider and I was out in front and good things happen.”
Planning Ahead On The Mound
Owen Puk had suffered an injury in his last start against Kennesaw State. Today, he was back on the mound, going two innings while allowing two runs on three hits and striking out two.
“We’ve been watching him closely all week,” said Witten. “Had a great bullpen on Thursday, and we felt good about him starting today. He was cleared and ready to go, but we also want to make sure that we’re being smart through the back month of this season, because we plan on playing for quite a while this year. We wanted to get him on the mound, make sure he was healthy and feeling fine when he came out, but we just wanted to be smart about it and get him in a good place for next week.”
FIU sending Western Kentucky packing marks the first time since 2016 that they’ve swept a ranked opponent. (Southern Miss) The Panthers now have a 26-18 overall record and a 9-8 conference record. They will now head north to Boca Raton to face the Florida Atlantic Owls on Tuesday, April 29th at 6:30 p.m.
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