CHAMP CENTRAL
BOX SCORE
BRACKET
HIGHLIGHTS
DAY 3 VIDEO WRAPUP
COACH PENDERS INTERVIEW
PHOTO GALLERY
CLEARWATER, Fla. – American Athletic Conference Player of the Year Joe DeRoche-Duffin went 4-for-6 with a pair of doubles and freshman Tim Cate struck out nine batters in 7.1 innings to lead UConn to a 9-1 win against USF Thursday at the American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship at Bright House Field.
UConn (35-22) extended its winning streak to 11 games and advanced to the semifinal round of the American Athletic Conference Championship for the second consecutive year. After an off day Friday, The Huskies will face either USF or Memphis Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. USF (24-32) lost for the first time in the tournament, sending the Bulls to an elimination game against Memphis Friday at 3 p.m. ET.
DeRoche-Duffin doubled in the fifth and sixth innings to help UConn score three runs in each frame, breaking open what had been a 1-1 game. His two-bagger down the leftfield line came after a Bobby Melley walk and set the table for Bryan Daniello, who laced a double to left to bring both runs home, giving the Huskies a 3-1 lead. Daniello came around to score on a one-out grounder to first to make it 4-1.
The Huskies again put their first two men in the sixth as an infield hit and a walk put runners on first and second for Melley, whose base hit to right scored Aaron Hill. DeRoche-Duffin followed with double to left to score Jack Sundberg, and Melley came home on Daniello’s sacrifce fly to give UConn a 7-1 advantage.
The lead proved to be plenty for Cate, The American’s Rookie Pitcher of the Year, who pitched into the eighth and scattered four hits and allowed one run, a solo home run by USF’s Joe Genord in the second inning. Cate improved to 4-1 with the win, while USF’s Tommy Eveld – the Bulls’ regular closer – fell to 0-3 in his first start of the 2016 season.
DeRoche-Duffin led all players with his four-hit evening, while Melley and Daniello both went 3-for-4 as the Huskies had a 17-4 advantage in hits.
The latest information on the American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship is available on the conference’s Championship Central page at
www.TheAmerican.org/Baseball.
2016 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
Bright House Field · Clearwater, Fla.
Tuesday, May 24 (CBS Sports Network)
Game 1 – No. 5 Houston 9, vs. No. 4 Cincinnati 1
Game 2 – No. 1 Tulane 4, No. 8 UCF 3
Wednesday, May 25 (American Digital Network)
Game 3 – No. 7 USF 4, No. 2 East Carolina 2
Game 4 – No. 3 UConn 6, No. 6 Memphis 2
Game 5 – UCF 7, Cincinnati 6 (10 innings) ........................................ (Cincinnati eliminated)
Thursday, May 26 (American Digital Network)
Game 6 – Memphis 5, East Carolina 4......................................... (East Carolina eliminated)
Game 7 – Houston 5, Tulane 3
Game 8 – UConn 9, USF 1
Friday, May 27 (American Digital Network)
Game 9 – Tulane (38-18) vs. UCF (26-32)...................................................................... 11 a.m.
Game 10 – USF (24-32) vs. Memphis (20-37)................................................................. 3 p.m.
Saturday, May 28 (American Digital Network)
Game 11 – Houston (35-22) vs. Winner of Game 9..................................................... 10 a.m.
Game 12 – UConn (35-22) vs. Winner of Game 10........................................................ 1 p.m.
Game 13 – Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 11 (if necessary)................. 4:30 p.m.
Game 14 – Loser of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 12 (if necessary)................. 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 29 (ESPNews)
Game 15 – Semifinal winners.............................................................................................. Noon
all times Eastern