Northwest Florida Downs Pensacola to Open Conference Play

PENSACOLA, Fla. – No. 3 Northwest Florida hit a pair of home runs and rode solid pitching performances to a 5-2 victory over Pensacola Tuesday to open Panhandle Conference play.

Dylan DeLucia picked up his sixth win on the mound allowing two runs on four hits with nine strike outs in eight innings of work. Jackson Boyd, last season's Panhandle Conference Fireman of the Year, pitched a clean ninth to earn the save.

Northwest Florida (18-4, 1-0 PC) got things going offensively in the first innings. Noah Bailey drove in a run on a ground ball before Justice Thompson doubled in another.

The Pirates answered in the third with an RBI single, but Zach McKnight got the run right back in the fourth when he homered to left. Brock Franks went deep an inning later to give the Raiders a 4-1 advantage.

A Pensacola sacrifice fly cut the lead to two, but Tomas Sanchez doubled home a run in the eighth to cap the scoring.

Northwest Florida will return to Pensacola on Thursday for a 5 p.m. first pitch. The game will be streamed live HERE or via live stats HERE.

For more information on Northwest Florida athletics, visit NWFRaiders.com or follow us on Twitter at @NWF_Raiders.