hadn’t pitched in 53 days.
On Monday, that didn’t matter.
The sophomore hitter-pitcher gave fifth-ranked Blinn College 4 1/3 gutsy innings and also contributed to a sturdy offensive effort as the Buccaneers rolled past fourth-ranked Johnson County 10-4 in an elimination game at the NJCAA Division I Baseball World Series on Sunday in Grand Junction, Colo.
Blinn improved to 2-1 in the double-elimination World Series and jumped to 48-13 overall – its most wins in a campaign during head coach Dusty Hart’s three-year run. The Bucs, who are looking to repeat as national champions after winning their first title in 2024, advanced to an elimination matchup with 17th-ranked McLennan Community College (Waco, Texas) at 3 p.m. CT on Tuesday.
Fryman did his best to ensure the Bucs would live to play another day.
The hard-throwing left-hander allowed two earned runs on three hits with three walks and a strikeout in his first start since April 3, and also went 3 for 6 at the plate with a pair of runs.
“I felt good; obviously a little tired after a late-night victory (Saturday), but (Blinn pitching) coach James Leverton and I have been working together and I’ve kept working during bullpen sessions to be ready for a situation like this,” Fryman said. “When I got out there, I just trusted that work and tried not to think too much, and I think that’s what helped me today. I just went out and competed and laid it all out there.”
Fryman’s spot start was the result of a grueling World Series schedule that typically has several teams playing two to three consecutive days without an off day. That, coupled with hitter-friendly Sam Suplizio Field, tends to tax bullpens early.
Through three games, nine different pitchers have taken the mound for the Bucs.
“Everybody is going to have to step up at this point,” Hart said. “It just is what it is at this point. We have some guys who are going to be ready to go Tuesday.”
Monday’s matchup between the second-seeded Bucs and fourth-seeded Cavaliers proved to be a tight affair early before Blinn found its offensive groove in the later innings.
Sophomore catcher Ethan Gonzalez continued his torrid start to the World Series with an RBI single in the top of the first.
Gonzalez is currently on an 11-for-15 tear (.733), which began with a 6-for-6, record-tying performance in his team’s tournament-opening loss Saturday. He went 2 for 4 with an RBI, a run scored, and a walk against Johnson County.
“I’m just trying to stay as calm as possible and remain focused on our next game,” Gonzalez said. “I’m going to take the same approach at the plate that I’ve had all season – keep it simple and look to hit a line drive up the middle – into Tuesday.”
Blinn freshman outfielder Brady Sullivan got his first start of the World Series and added an infield single in the first which led to a run-scoring error and a 2-0 Bucs lead.
Johnson County recorded single tallies in the second and third innings to tie the game, but Blinn stormed ahead starting in the fifth.
Freshmen Kason Atkins and Drew Britton were hit by a pitch and walked, respectively, to give the Bucs a 4-2 edge, and in the sixth, sophomores Caden Ferraro and Matt Quintanar hit back-to-back solo home runs to make it 6-2.
In the seventh, sophomore Ryder McDaniel added an RBI double and Ferraro made it 8-2 with a sacrifice fly.
After Johnson County pushed across a run in the bottom of the seventh, the Bucs answered in the eighth when Gonzalez trotted home on a wild pitch.
Quintanar capped Blinn’s offense with an RBI single in the ninth.
Johnson County scored its final run in the bottom of the inning.
The Bucs racked up 15 hits.
Ferraro and Quintanar each went 3 for 5 with a pair of RBIs, and Sullivan added two hits. Britton drew three of Blinn’s seven walks.
On the mound, Fryman ended his day with the game tied 2-2 with one out in the fifth, and did not factor into the decision. His solid start paved the way for freshman and game-two hero Ben Polleschultz, who picked up his second win in relief in as many days.
Polleschultz tossed 4 2/3 innings of two-run ball. He allowed five hits, walked two, and punched out five.
The left-hander worked two perfect frames against Florida SouthWestern State College to close out Blinn’s 14-13, come-from-behind victory Saturday.
“Polleschultz has nerves of steel,” Hart said. “You’re talking about a guy who threw a complete-game shutout with 16 strikeouts and two walks in the championship of the regional tournament; nothing bothers that guy. Knowing we have him at the back end really makes you feel comfortable.”
Blinn will now do battle with seventh-seeded McClennan in a battle of Texas teams. McLennan fell to top-seeded Walters State Community College (Morristown, Tenn.) 13-5 in eight innings Monday to drop into the elimination bracket.
In their lone matchup of the season, the Bucs defeated the Highlanders 13-3 in seven innings at home on March 10 in Brenham, Texas. Whichever ballclub prevails Tuesday will have an off day Wednesday before facing either Walters State, Lake Land College (Mattoon, Ill.), or Florence-Darlington Technical College (Florence, S.C.) in a semifinal tilt at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 53 national championships since 1987.
