TAMPA, Fla. – Sarah Willis struck out six and allowed only one unearned run in five innings to pick up her third win of the tournament and lead UCF to its second straight American Athletic Conference Championship title with a 9-1 victory against Tulsa Saturday at the USF Softball Stadium.
Willis was chosen as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after she went 3-0 and did not allow an earned run in 17 innings during the Knights' three wins. UCF (39-19) earned The American's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship after the Knights claimed their third American title (2015, 2022).
UCF ripped 13 hits, including four extra-base hits, to power its way to Saturday's victory. The Knights scored runs in four of the first five innings, ending the game via the eight-run rule on Aubrey Evans' bases-loaded single up the middle in the bottom of the fifth.
Jasmine Williams smacked a two-run home run to left to start the Knights' finishing series in the fifth.
Kennedy Searcy laced a two-out line drive that dropped just inside the rightfield line for a two-run triple to put the Knights ahead 3-0 in the second inning. Jada Cody followed with a line drive through the middle on the first pitch she saw to make it a 4-0 game.
Willis had worked out of an early jam when Tulsa put runners at the corners with two outs in the top of the second, and Willis fell behind Abby Jones on a 3-0 count. But Willis came back with three straight off-speed pitches for strikes to bring the Knights back to the dugout.
Tulsa got on the board in the top of the third, cutting the deficit to 4-1 after Haley Morgan reached on a one-out double to leftfield and scored when the Knights couldn't handle Imani Edwards' grounder to first. But the Golden Hurricane was unable to solve Willis, who allowed three hits and walked one with six strikeouts.
Willis highlighted a group of six UCF players on the 12-player All-Tournament Team as she joined Williams, Searcy, Cody, Aubrey Evans and Chloe Evans.
The Knights will take a 13-game winning streak into the NCAA Championship.
2023 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
May 11-13 | USF Softball Stadium | Tampa, Florida
First Round - Thursday, May 11
No. 4 Tulsa 3, No. 5 Houston 2
No. 2 UCF 7, No. 7 Memphis 4
No. 3 South Florida 7, No. 6 East Carolina 0
Semifinals - Friday, May 12
Tulsa 2, No. 1 Wichita State 1 (8 innings)
UCF 2, South Florida 0
Championship Game - Saturday, May 13
UCF 9, Tulsa 1 (5 innings)
All-Tournament Team
Gabriella Nori, P, South Florida
Jordyn Kadlub, OF, South Florida
Kailyn Bearpaw, OF, Tulsa
Imani Edwards, IF, Tulsa
Claira Skaggs, IF, Tulsa
Maura Moore, P, Tulsa
Aubrey Evans, DP, UCF
Chloe Evans, OF, UCF
Jada Cody, IF, UCF
Kennedy Searcy, OF, UCF
Jasmine Williams, IF, UCF
Sarah Willis, P, UCF
Most Outstanding Player
Sarah Willis, P, UCF