A tough start put Virginia Wesleyan behind early, and the Marlins were unable to recover in a 15-5 loss to Regent.
Regent wasted no time jumping in front, plating four runs in the opening inning on four hits to immediately put the Marlins on their heels. Virginia Wesleyan struggled to find rhythm early at the plate, going scoreless through the first two innings while trying to settle in on the mound.
The Marlins answered in the third with a spark. After a pair of hit-by-pitches set the table, Reynaldo Perez Mendez delivered a clutch two-run double to left center. A sacrifice fly from Ty James followed, trimming the deficit to 4-3 and briefly shifting momentum back toward Virginia Wesleyan.
That momentum proved short-lived, however, as Regent responded with a three-run fourth inning and continued to apply pressure offensively throughout the game. The visitors totaled 19 hits on the day, with multiple extra-base hits and timely situational hitting stretching the lead inning by inning.
Virginia Wesleyan scattered six hits across the contest but couldn't generate sustained offense. Joshua Jones led the way with two hits and was active on the basepaths, swiping four bases. Perez Mendez finished with a team-high two RBI, while Matt Metheny added a pinch-hit single and later came around to score.
The Marlins did push across single runs in the seventh and ninth innings, including an RBI groundout from James and a run scored in the final frame, but the early deficit and continued pressure from Regent proved too much to overcome.
