East Carolina captured its second straight American Athletic Conference baseball regular season championship Thursday, May 20. The Pirates also picked up the regular season crown in 2019.

Thursday, May 20
East Carolina 10, South Florida 1 (Game 1) - Box Score
East Carolina 5, South Florida 2 (Game 2) - Box Score
Cincinnati 10, Tulane 6 (Game 1) - Box Score
Cincinnati 11, Tulane 8 (Game 2) - Box Score
UCF 3, Houston 1 (Game 1) - Box Score
UCF 2, Houston 1 (Game 2) - Box Score
Wichita State 12, Memphis 5 (Game 1) - Box Score
Wichita State 8, Memphis 5 (Game 2) - Box Score

East Carolina 10, South Florida 1 (Game 1) - Box Score
East Carolina 5, South Florida 2 (Game 2) - Box Score
TAMPLA, Fla. – No. 11 East Carolina scored five runs in the third inning, while its pitching staff allowed a pair of runs as the Pirates completed the doubleheader sweep, 5-2, Thursday at USF Baseball Stadium in American Athletic Conference action. With the win, the Pirates clinched their second-straight regular season AAC title and improved to 38-11 over all (20-6 AAC) and the Bulls dropped to 22-26 (12-14 AAC).
 
Bryson Worrell's three-run homer highlighted the five-run frame where the Pirates took a 5-0 lead in the third inning. Ryley Johnson singled to right field to get the stanza going and Connor Norby followed with another hit to right extending his on-base streak to a nation-leading 56 games. After Johnson was picked off at third base for the first out, Thomas Francisco reached on a fielder's choice and Norby moved to second on an error on the same play. Two batters later Lane Hoover singled to center scoring Norby and Francisco moved to third on another Bull error.
 
Seth Caddell kept the inning going with an RBI single to left plating Francisco and Worrell blasted his seventh home run of the season to right field clearing the bases and giving ECU a 5-0 lead.
 
Riley Hogan's RBI single to left field got the Bulls on the board in the home half of the third. Nelson Rivera singled to begin the frame and took third don Carmine Lane's two-out base hit up the middle. Hogan took a first pitch offering from Smith to left for the run.
 
Cam Colmore (6-1) picked up the win in relief tossing two scoreless innings where he gave up a hit and struck out three. Matt Bridges locked down his third save of the year surrendering two hits in 1.2 innings and fanning three, including Jarrett Eaton to finish the game and clinch the league regular season title. Starter Tyler Smith gave up two runs (both earned) on seven hits with three punch outs in 4.2 innings. C.J. Mayhue walked a pair in two-thirds of an inning in his relief outing.
 
Collin Sullivan (2-3) suffered the loss after being touched for five runs (all unearned) on six hits with three punch outs over his three innings. Dylan Burns (3.0 IP, 2 Hs, 2 BBs) and Logan Lyle (3.0 IP, 2 Ks) closed out the contest with a combined six shutout innings of relief.
 
Game 1 Recap
Gavin Williams was dominate in his ninth start of the season allowing one run (earned) on three hits with 11 strikeouts improving to 9-0 on the year as No. 11 East Carolina took game one 10-1. Danny Beal worked two scoreless frames with a strikeout and Nick Logusch closed out the game with a perfect ninth that included a pair of punch outs.
 
ECU jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to Francisco's RBI sac fly in the third. Ryley Johnson singled with one out and moved to second on Norby's single through the right side. After a successful double steal, Francisco lifted an 0-2 offering from Joseph Sanchez to left field easily plating Johnson.
 
USF responded with a run in the home half of the third tying the game at one-all. Nick Gonzalez and Nelson Rivera laced consecutive singles and after Jarrett Eaton dropped down a sac bunt pushing the runners up 90 feet, Carmine Lane's RBI ground out scored Gonzalez.
 
Sanchez (0-2) took the loss allowing three runs (all earned) on eight hits with a walk and a strikeout in five innings. Caleb Pundsack was touched for seven runs (six earned) on five hits and two walks in just one-third of an inning. Connor Churchill tossed 2.2 scoreless innings of relief giving up a couple of hits while walking two and fanning one before Drew Hemenway worked the ninth inning with one strikeout.

Cincinnati 10, Tulane 6 (Game 1) - Box Score
CINCINNATI – The University of Cincinnati baseball hit four home runs in a 10-6 series-opening win over Tulane on Thursday afternoon in American Athletic Conference action at UC Baseball Stadium.
 
Cincinnati (26-24, 15-14 AAC) got homers from Cole Harting (9), Jace Mercer (8), Ryan Nicholson (5) and Eric Santiago (7) in the win. Tulane (28-19, 17-7 AAC) added three home runs of its own on a warm and sunny day in the Queen City.
 
Mercer staked UC starter Garrett Schoenle with a 5-0 lead after belting a second-inning, grand slam off the scoreboard in right field, his ninth round tripper of the season. The Bearcats loaded the bases with three-straight singles. From Ryan Nicholson, Paul Komistek and Griffin Merritt before an infield single by Joe Powell ended up in no-man's land and allowed Nicholson to score. Mercer's poke off the board came next on a 1-0 count.
 
Schoenle (6-3), who was on a pitch count, gave up a single hit in three innings, fanning four. He will open the AAC Championship for UC on the hill next Tuesday in Clearwater, Florida.
 
UC made it 8-1 in the fifth after Nicholson just missed nicking Fifth Third Arena with a home-run ball of his own. Again, the single was kind to the Bearcats as Mercer led off with a tap to the right side and Bellini hit one to the left side to put runners on the corners with no outs. Nicholson sent an 0-1 offering skyward over the right-field fence for his fifth homer of the campaign. 

Cincinnati 11, Tulane 8 (Game 2) - Box Score
CINCINNATI – A three-run home run by University of Cincinnati designated hitter Griffin Merritt in the bottom of the seventh capped a five-run inning in an 11-8 come-from-behind win for the Bearcats in the back end of a Thursday doubleheader at UC Baseball Stadium.
 
Cincinnati (27-24, 16-14 American Athletic Conference) and Tulane (28-20, 17-8 AAC) combined for 35 runs on 50 hits in the two games as the weather in the Queen City approached 90 degrees and heated up the offenses.
 
Merritt became the first UC player to get to double-digit homers this year with his go-ahead shot to left field off Tulane reliever Trent Johnson, which scored Tanner Holen and Paul Komistek. It was Merritt's team-best 10th home run of the season.
 
UC trailed 8-4 before the rally, which started from a Joey Bellini leadoff single and a double by Eric Santiago to score Bellini. Komistek drew a 1-out walk and Holen doubled off the wall in right to plate Santiago and the Bearcats led 9-8 at the end of the frame.
 
The Bearcats added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth with RBI singles from Santiago and Komistek. Santiago and Cole Harting both had three hits, and two runs scored. Santiago added two RBIs while Harting belted a pair of doubles and a triple.
 
Cincinnati reliever Beau Keathley (2-3) picked up the win with 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out three. Connor Linn threw 2.2 strong innings, surrendering three runs on five hits after coming in for starter Zach Segal who gave up five runs on five hits in 3.2 innings of work. Johnson (2-4) took the loss for Tulane.

UCF 3, Houston 1 (Game 1) - Box Score
UCF 2, Houston 1 (Game 2) - Box Score
Orlando, Fla. – The UCF baseball team swept Houston in their series-opening doubleheader, winning game one 3-1 and game two 2-1.
 
Pitching led the way for the Knights, only allowing eight hits, two runs, and striking out 21 Cougars in their 18 innings of work.

Game 1 Recap
Freshman Hunter Patteson got the start for the Knights. He pitched a quick first inning before giving up a run in the second off of a Samuel Tormos single that plated Brandon Uhse.
 
Down 1-0, Ben Vespi came in to pitch in the third inning. The Cougars got runners on the corners, but Vespi pitched his way out of it without giving up a run.
 
In the bottom of the inning, Gephry Pena ripped a single and then stole second base for his 25th stolen bag of the season.
 
In the fifth, Andrew Brait got on base with a single, followed by Pena working a walk. Jordan Rathbone came up to the plate with two outs and hit a bomb to left field to give the Knights a 3-1 lead.
 
That would be all the Knights needed because the bullpen pitched seven scoreless innings while only allowing two hits.
 
Game 2 Recap
The UCF offense got going early in game two. Jordan Rathbone singled, then Josh Crouch walked. After a sac fly from Ben McCabe, Rathbone got to third base. Gephry Pena got an infield single that plated Rathbone to give the Knights a 1-0 lead.

The offense gave starter Zack Hunsicker a lead, and he went to work. He sat down the first ten Houston batters before walking Tyler Bielamowicz to end the perfect game bid. He sat down the next two Cougars to get out of the inning.
Nick Vieira came in and sat down the first four batters he faced before giving up the first Houston hit of the game to Ian McMillan. Vieira then got out of the inning without giving up any more damage.
 
Then in the 7th, UCF got much need insurance when Pablo Ruiz singled home John Montes making the game 2-0.
McMillan got another hit in the next frame, this time scoring Houston's first run of the ball game, making it 2-1.
Zack Bennett trotted back out to the mound to pitch the 9th and closed the game out as UCF would hold on to win game two 2-1 and sweep the doubleheader.

Wichita State 12, Memphis 5 (Game 1) - Box Score
Wichita State 8, Memphis 5 (Game 2) - Box Score
WICHITA, Kan. – Jack Sigrist, Paxton Wallace and Garrett Kocis all homered as the Wichita State baseball team swept a doubleheader over the Memphis Tigers Thursday, May 20, at Eck Stadium, Home of Tyler Field, winning game one, 12-5, before taking the nightcap, 8-5.
 
WSU (29-20, 17-12 American) scored 12 runs on 13 hits on its way to the 12-5 triumph in the opening game of the day.
 
Sigrist went 2-for-5 with his fourth homer of the season and tallied a pair of RBI, while Corrigan Bartlett added a triple and drove in a game-high four runs, leading the Shockers at the plate. Seth Stroh (triple) and Hunter Gibson (double) also had extra base hits in game one.
 
Wichita State reliever Ryan Stuempfig (6-0) picked up the win on the mound after allowing one unearned run on two hits with two strikeouts and a walk in 2 1/3 innings.
 
After falling behind early, 3-0, WSU trimmed the deficit to 3-2 in the bottom of the third after Sigrist belted a 2-1 pitch over the left field wall for a two-run home run.
 
The Tigers (16-36, 6-24 American) tacked on a run in the top of the fifth, upping their lead to 4-2, but the Shockers exploded for six runs in the bottom-half of the inning, opening up an 8-4 advantage.
 
Bartlett provided the big hit in the inning after WSU had already scored three runs and loaded the bases, hitting a bases-clearing triple to right field.
 
Wichita State went on to plate four runs in the bottom of the seventh and held Memphis to just one run in the top-half of the inning, sealing the win.
 
The Shockers used a four-run seventh inning to turn back the Tigers, 8-5, in the nightcap.
 
Wallace went 3-for-4, including his 10th homer of the season, and batted in three, while Kocis belted his team-high 11th home run of the season, pacing Wichita State in game two.
 
Shocker right-handed starter Jace Kaminska (7-1) earned the win on the rubber, allowing two earned runs on four hits with two strikeouts and three walks in five innings of work.