Wednesday, March 24
No. 22/24 UCF 8, No. 5 Florida 6
Wednesday night's game was one that will not be soon forgotten for the Knights as No. 22 UCF battled with No. 5 Florida all the way to the end before the Knights came from behind late to hit a walk-off home run and take down the Gators, 8-6 at the UCF Softball Complex.
The loss marked just the third of the season for the Gators, with their only other losses coming to top-25 programs (No. 16 FSU and No. 9 Kentucky). It was UCF's first time beating Florida since April 4, 2018, when the Knights shut out then No. 4 Florida, 1-0 at the UCF Softball Complex.
Meanwhile, the win moved the Knights to 20-6 on the season and was their second win over a top five opponent this season (No. 2 Arizona, 2-0).
"That was a fight from our offense. I just loved how they made adjustments and passed the bat," said head coach Cindy Ball-Malone. "I love the maturity and experience that this team showed. They are supposed to be there and they are acting like it."
The Knights jumped out to an early, 1-0 lead over Florida but the UCF lead wouldn't last long as the Gators posted a five-run third inning to take a 5-1 edge.
Despite the early deficit, UCF would battle back with a big inning of their own, posting four runs, including two home runs in the bottom of the third to tie the game at five.
That score would remain until the Gators took a one-run lead on a sacrifice-fly in the sixth, putting them up 6-5.
Down to their final three outs, the Knights' leadoff hitter reached to start the bottom of the seventh and, after a hard-fought, eight pitch at-bat from Jada Cody that saw her foul off four pitches, Cody tied the game with an RBI double to center field. With just one out and Cody in scoring position, UCF backstop Karissa Ornelas battled before hitting a two-run, no doubt home run to give UCF the 8-6 walk-off victory.
In the circle, Gianna Mancha got the call to start. Mancha allowed four earned in 2.1 innings before giving way to Alea White, who was credited with the win after tossing 4.2 innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on just three hits and striking out five. With the win, White is 11-1 on the season.
Key Moments
The Gators threatened in the top of the first as their first two batters of the game reached via walks, but UCF starting pitcher Gianna Mancha sat down the next three straight to escape the jam and get the Knights back in the dugout.
Kennedy Searcy led off the bottom of the first with a walk and came around to score via a Georgia Blair RBI double to right to put UCF up 1-0.
Gators' third baseman Charla Echols hit a double to right in the top of the third to drive in a run and tie the game at one.
Two batters later, Jordan Matthews walked with the bases loaded to drive in another Florida run, putting them up 2-1.
The next batter, Julia Cottrill, hit a two-RBI double to left to extend Florida's lead to 4-1.
Later in the inning, a sacrifice-fly would give the Gators a 5-1 advantage.
Kennedy Searcy led off the bottom of the third with a walk and was followed up by Georgia Blair, who hit a home run to left to cut the Knights' deficit to 5-3.
The next batter, Shannon Doherty, hit a solo shot to bring UCF to within a run.
Later in the inning, Knights' center fielder Kyra Klarkowski hit a sacrifice-fly to drive in a run and tie the game at five apiece.
A Florida sacrifice-fly in the sixth would give them the late 6-5 edge.
With a runner on first and no outs, Jada Cody smacked a double to straight away center field to drive in a run and tie the game at six.
With Cody on third and one out, Karissa Ornelas hit a deep home run to left-center field to give UCF the 8-6 walk-off victory.
NOTABLES
The win marked the Knights' second win over a top five opponent this season.
The win marked UCF's 700th as a program.
With the win, Alea White becomes the only Knight to have beaten the Gators twice (April 4, 2018).
With the home run, Georgia Blair became the first Knight to hit 10 or more home runs in a season since Kayln Cenal did it in 2015 (11).
It was the Knights' first win over the Gators since April 4, 2018
With the walk-off, Karissa Ornelas became the second Knight to hit a walk-off against the Gators since Allison Kime did it in 2008 (May 18, 2008).
The loss was just Florida's third of the season, all to top 25 teams. The Gators had previously only lost to then No. 16 FSU on March 6, 7-2, and then No. 9 Kentucky on March 14, 4-2.
USF 8, North Florida 0 (6)/USF 4, North Florida 1
The University of South Florida softball team swept its final doubleheader prior to the beginning of conference play. The Bulls defeated the North Florida Ospreys, defeating the team 8-0 in six innings in game one and 4-1 in game two.
Alexis Johns (Sarasota, Fla.) led the Bulls at the plate, finishing 4-for-5 in the leadoff spot between both games, driving home four runs while scoring two. She also hit a double and stole two bases in the doubleheader. Georgina Corrick (Sanford, Fla.) started both games in the circle, and earned the complete-game victory in game two. Vivian Ponn (Fort Myers, Fla.) received the win in game one.
The Bulls extended their win streak to seven games with the pair of wins, including three run-rule victories in the last five games.
Game One – USF 8, UNF 0 (6)
The Bulls wasted no time starting their offense in game one. Brooke Hartman (Port Orange, Fla.) doubled home two runs and was driven home off a Kyndall Williams (Trenton, Fla.) double later in the inning to give USF a 3-0 lead.
The Bulls added to their lead in the third. Alanah Rivera (St. Petersburg, Fla.) singled home Alexis Buchman (Tampa, Fla.) then Johns singled home Emilee Hanlon (Dunkirk, N.Y.) to put USF up 5-0.
The Bulls walked off with the win in the sixth. Bethaney Keen (Bradenton, Fla.) tripled to score Ponn and AnaMarie Bruni (Schwenksville, Pa.) to give South Florida a 7-0 lead. Williams ended the game in the next at bat with a single that scored Keen to earn the run-rule victory.
Game Two – USF 2, UND 0
The Bulls kept up its offensive success in game two. Hartman started the scoring in the first by singling home Johns to give USF a 1-0 lead after one inning. The Bulls extended its lead to 3-0 in the second when Johns singled and drove home Hanlon and Megan Pierro (Lutz, Fla.).
Pitchers dueled after, with both facing the minimum in the third. USF broke through again in the fourth, with Johns doubling home Brooke Leistl (Valrico, Fla.) to extend the Bulls' lead to 4-0.
The Ospreys attempted a comeback in the seventh. A pair of defensive miscues allowed a Rebecca Koskey to reach second, and she later scored on a single. Corrick shut the door on UNF two batters later, earning the complete-game victory.
Notables
Bruni tied Samantha Ray (2003-06) for fifth on USF's all-time stolen bases list. She stole two bases in the doubleheader, raising her career total to 75.
The Bulls are 7-0 this season when scoring first.
Williams, Keen and Hartman all tallied two RBIs in the first game.
Quotable
Head coach Ken Eriksen on the doubleheader…
"I thought the top of our lineup did a heck of a job. Alexis Johns established the pace of the game in the first game and got us off to a great start in game two then comes through with a clutch hit. When you've got that type of stuff at the top of the lineup that's getting on and putting the pressure on the other team, especially in the first inning, you can win a lot of ball games. Alexis Johns worked so hard to get where she's at right now. For Georgina to hold down zeros in the beginning of both games and give us that shot was a big deal too. A combination of offense and defense right now is working well for us."
McNeese State 9, Houston 3
The University of Houston Softball team dropped its midweek contest to McNeese by a score of 9-3 on Wednesday night.
Houston moves to 9-14 on the season, while McNeese improves to 11-18.
With two hits tonight, sophomore Paige Hulsey is batting .556 with a pair of multiple-hit games in her past three contests. Junior Kati Ray Brown joined Hulsey as those with two hits against the Cowgirls. Seniors Lindsey Stewart-Vaughn and Aspen Howie each collected a hit as well.
KEY INNINGS
2nd | The Cowgirls jumped out to the first lead of the game, plating a pair of runs off a fielding blunder from the Cougars.
3rd | A two-run home run from McNeese stretched its lead to 4-0.
5th | After Hulsey singled home Houston's first run of the game, Stewart-Vaughn placed a double in the gap to score a pair and trim the Cougar deficit to just two. McNeese responded though, as a two-run home run in the bottom of the inning pushed the advantage back to four at 7-3.
TOP OFFENSIVE PLAYERS
Paige Hulsey | 2-3, RBI, R
Kati Ray Brown | 2-3
Lindsey Stewart-Vaughn | 1-3, 2B, 2 RBIs
Aspen Howie | 1-3, RBI
PITCHING BREAKDOWN
Logan Hulon (L, 0-3) | 4.0 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 2 K
Megan Lee | 2.0 IP, 2 ER, BB K