The first day of the 2023 American Athletic Conference baseball league slate commenced on Friday, March 31.

Friday, March 31
Wichita State 2, Cincinnati 1 - Box Score
South Florida 2, UCF 0 - Box Score
Tulane 5, Memphis 2 - Box Score
Houston 5, East Carolina 4 (10 innings) - Box Score

Wichita State 2, Cincinnati 1 - Box Score
CINCINNATI, Ohio -- Clark Candiotti and Caden Favors combined to allow just two hits while striking out 12, and Wichita State manufactured a pair of runs to edge Cincinnati 2-1 on Friday afternoon at UC Baseball Stadium. The victory extends the Shockers winning streak to five games.

It's the second time in the last week that the Shockers have held an opponent to two hits or fewer after limiting Massachusetts to two hits last Saturday.

Candiotti (3-2) was untouchable in the early going, retiring the first 12 Bearcats he faced while striking out six. He allowed a leadoff solo homer to Cole Harting in the fifth and pitched around a two-out double in the sixth to earn his third victory of the season, finishing his day with seven strikeouts and just two walks.

Favors took the baton from Candiotti in the seventh and allowed only one baserunner over the final three innings to earn the save, the first of his collegiate career. The southpaw struck out five, including all three men he faced in the eighth, and ended his outing by retiring the last seven Cincinnati hitters.

Wichita State (15-10) mustered just enough offense to support the stellar effort on the mound, scratching across single runs in the first and fifth. Payton Tolle opened the scoring in the first with an RBI single against Cincinnati starter Chase Hopewell (1-2), and Chuck Ingram made it 2-0 in the fifth by beating out a potential inning-ending double play grounder to score Kyte McDonald. The Shockers ended the day with seven hits, all singles, from seven different players.

Hopewell pitched well in defeat for the Bearcats (11-16), tagged for two runs in six innings while striking out four. Two Cincinnati relievers held the Shockers off the board for the final three innings.

South Florida 2, UCF 0 - Box Score
ORLANDO (March 31, 2023) – Ethan Brown and Riley Skeen combined to shutout the UCF Knights (16-10, 0-1 AAC) on Friday night in a 2-0 victory for the University of South Florida Bulls (11-16, 1-0 AAC) in the first conference game and War On I-4 matchup of the season. Brown followed up a career-high 10-strikeout performance last Friday with 11 strikeouts against UCF while logging a career-best 7.1 IP.

Brown (1-2) picked up his first win of the season while he and the Bulls handed UCF's Ruddy Gomez (4-1) his first loss to date as the two were locked in a scoreless pitcher's duel through six innings.

South Florida finally broke the scoring seal in the top of the seventh inning, not long after Brown escaped his biggest jam of the night with a strikeout to strand a pair of Knights in scoring position in the bottom of the fifth.

Doubles machine Daniel Cantu opened the seventh frame with a two-bagger to left field. Rafael Betancourt moved Cantu to third base with a groundout and Travis Sankovich drove him home for the first run of the ballgame with a sacrifice fly.

The Bulls added an insurance run in the top of the eighth off the bat of Betancourt, who remained red-hot since making his collegiate debut two weeks ago.

Tulane 5, Memphis 2 - Box Score
NEW ORLEANS – Tulane third baseman Simon Baumgardt homered and starter Dylan Carmouche stymied visiting Memphis on the mound as the Green Wave won 5-2 in the American Athletic Conference opener for both schools.
 
The Olive and Blue is now 7-19 on the season, while the Tigers dropped to 14-12.
 
Carmouche (1-5) allowed just two unearned runs on six hits with four strikeouts and three walks in seven innings. Relievers Michael Fowler and Michael Lombardi followed with clean eighth and ninth innings, respectively, with the latter picking up his third save. Fowler struck out the side in his frame, hurling 12 strikes in 19 pitches.
 
Memphis starter David Warren (2-2) took the loss, as he gave up five runs (four earned) on five hits with five strikeouts and two walks in six and one-third innings.
 
Baumgardt went 2-for-3 at the plate for Tulane, which included a solo shot to center in the second inning. It was his fifth round-tripper, which tied him for the team lead with Jackson Linn.
 
Second baseman Anthony Hansen and third baseman Logan Kohler each had a pair of hits for the Tigers.

Houston 5, East Carolina 4 (10 innings) - Box Score
HOUSTON – The first of three regular season battles between the American Athletic Conference's top-two preseason favorites lived up to the billing.
 
University of Houston sophomore Cameron Nickens sliced a game-winning, RBI-single into right field, lifting the Cougars to a 5-4, 10-inning victory over No. 8 East Carolina in both teams' league opener Friday night from Sanders Field at Schroeder Park.
 
Junior Alex Lopez registered a leadoff double in the 10th for his fifth two-bagger of the season, setting the stage for Nickens' heroics. Houston (13-13, 1-0 American) stretched the game into extras, erasing a two-run deficit in the ninth, highlighted by a game-tying, two-out, RBI-double from sophomore Malachi Lott.
 
The loss snapped East Carolina's (19-7, 0-1 American) 10-game weekend win streak. It was the first matchup between the programs since the 2022 American Athletic Conference Championship game in Clearwater, Fla.
 
East Carolina sophomore starter Trey Yesavage, who entered the game with a 4-0 record, did not receive a decision. The Boyertown, Pa., native notched 13 strikeouts while limiting the Cougars to a pair of runs on three hits across 6.0 innings.   
 
Houston junior starter Josh Ekness notched 6.1 strong innings, working around six hits and three walks while striking out five batters. The five punchouts matched a season high. The Woodlands, Texas, product tossed 97 pitches.

Cougar right-handed junior reliever Justin Murray (1-0) earned his first victory of the season, holding the Pirates scoreless over the final 3.2 innings, working around a pair of hits and one walk while fanning four. He recorded career-highs in both innings pitched and strikeouts in his appearance. His leaping defensive gem in the 10th inning left the bases loaded.

Tyler Bradt (0-1) took the loss for the Pirates.