UCF picked up a series win, while Cincinnati and Wichita State earned splits in American Athletic Conference baseball action on Sunday, May 2.

Sunday, May 2
Cincinnati 6, USF 4 - Box Score
UCF 17, Memphis 5 (7 innings) - Box Score
Wichita State 11, Easet Carolina 9 - Box Score

Cincinnati 6, USF 4 - Box Score
TAMPA, Fla. – The University of Cincinnati baseball team scored four runs in the ninth and hung on for a 6-4 win at South Florida in American Athletic Conference action on Sunday at USF Baseball Stadium.
 
Cincinnati (21-20, 10-10 AAC) tallied only one hit in the final at bat, a bunt single by Joe Powell, but took advantage of USF (17-21, 7-9 AAC) miscues, plating runs on an error, two hit batters and a wild pitch.
 
Tanner Holen was hit by the first offering of the frame and Powell's bloop bunt to third advanced pinch runner Josh Hegemann to second. Jace Mercer drew a 1-out walk on a 3-2 count and Joey Bellini reached on an error which scored Hegemann. Eric Santiago was hit by the first pitch, and Powell crossed the plate with the go-ahead run. Paul Komistek reached on a fielder's choice which saw Mercer thrown out trying to score. After USF went to the bullpen, Ryan Nicholson was hit by the first pitch and Bellini scored. Santiago came home on a wild pitch and UC headed to the bottom of the ninth with a 6-3 advantage.
 
Reliever Dean McCarthy was in for the ninth after stranding two USF runners with the final out of the previous inning and USF would not go down without a fight, loading the bases following a double and a pair of full-count walks which were sandwiched by a 3-2 strikeout, but the senior transfer got a fly out to center field to end the game and earn the series split for the Bearcats.
 
McCarthy (3-3) picked up the win while USF reliever Orion Kerkering (3-3) took the loss. UC starter Jalen Wade pitched a gem, going 6.0 innings and giving up one run on four hits, striking out three in a 96-pitch outing, his longest since throwing 102 pitches against Xavier on May 8, 2018.

UCF 17, Memphis 5 (7 innings) - Box Score
Orlando, Fla. – The Knights offense was rolling in the series finale against Memphis on Sunday, picking up a seven-inning 10-run rule, walk-off victory, 17-5. The victory marks the first time this season the Knights have picked up a victory via run-rule this season.
 
The Knights offense got going early and didn't let up, jumping out to a 10-0 lead at the end of the third inning. UCF plated two in the first on Gephry Pena and Ben McCabe RBI singles, before scoring two more on a Jordan Rathbone big fly in the second inning.
 
Freshman, John Montes drove his first home run of the day over the right-centerfield wall for two RBI in the third. Jordan Rathbone picked up his first RBI of the day to drive in Tom Josten, before Alex Freeland hit a bases clearing double to drive in three more.
 
Starting pitcher Jack Sinclair tossed three innings of no-hit baseball, but the Tigers tagged him for a pair of runs in the fourth.
 
In the fifth, Pablo Ruiz delivered four more runs for the Knights in the form of a grand slam, extending the UCF lead to 14-2. With the threat of the 10-run rule looming over Memphis, they plated three runs in the seventh, staying alive in a 14-5 ball game.
 
In the bottom half of the seventh, John Montes launched his second home run of the day over the center field wall, driving in three, securing the 17-5 walk-off victory.

Wichita State 11, Easet Carolina 9 - Box Score
WICHITA, Kan. – Closer Aaron Haase collected a seven-out save to help the Wichita State baseball team earn an 11-9 victory over eighth-ranked East Carolina in the final game of a four-game American Athletic Conference series Sunday, May 2, at Eck Stadium, Home of Tyler Field.
 
With the win, the Shockers earn a 2-2 series split with the Pirates and improve to 22-17 overall and 10-9 in The American, while ECU drops to 30-9 on the season and 12-4 in conference play.
 
Haase, a sophomore right-hander from Amarillo, Texas, tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings after entering the game with two outs in the top of the seventh, allowing no earned runs on just two hits to lock down his team and American Athletic Conference-best eighth save of the season.
 
Ross Cadena went 3-for-5 with his second homer of the season, while Chuck Ingram also homered, and Couper Cornblum added two hits, including a double, and drove in a game-high three runs, leading Wichita State at the plate.
 
WSU reliever LJ McDonough (1-0) picked up the win on the mound after allowing two unearned runs on two hits with three strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings.
 
The Shockers used a six-run first inning to race out to a 6-2 lead after the Pirates had scored two in the top of the inning.