Tampa Spartans Face Championship Delay After Loss to West Chester

CARY, N.C. — The University of Tampa baseball team will have to postpone their quest for a historic third consecutive NCAA Division II title. On Friday, the Spartans faced West Chester in the second game of their best-of-three championship series but suffered a 12-4 defeat at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.

This loss marked the Spartans' first since May 3 and only their second in the past 20 games, setting the stage for a decisive Game 3 on Saturday at 3 p.m. Head coach Joe Urso expressed disappointment over the team's performance, citing “uncharacteristic” mistakes that included 10 walks and three batters hit by pitches. “You can’t give a good team free bases,” he noted, emphasizing that West Chester capitalized on these errors to pull away in the later innings.

Initially, the Spartans (50-9) showcased their potential, overcoming an early 2-0 deficit. After pitching struggles from B.J. Bailey, who gave up five runs in 5 ⅔ innings, the offense rallied in the third inning. Brayden Woodburn's single kickstarted a scoring spree that culminated in Jake Books hitting a three-run homer, giving Tampa a 3-2 lead.

However, momentum shifted after West Chester (48-11) reclaimed the lead in the fifth. The Spartans briefly tied the game, but the Rams responded decisively with multiple runs in the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth innings, effectively sealing the Spartans' fate.

Despite the setback, Urso remains hopeful, recalling last year's championship run, where his team similarly fought back in a decisive Game 3. “You’ve got the opportunity of your lifetime,” he said. “One game for everything... We just have to regroup and execute the same things we’ve had to do all year to be successful.”