UCF Baseball’s first top-ten matchup brought not only a 4-3 win, but also a single-game record crowd of 4,319.
UCF Pitcher Kyle Marsh swept the Florida lineup with two strikeouts and a putout at the top of the first, holding the inning at 0 hits and 0 runs. UF had the first walk at the top of second, only to have their bases cleared with a double play made by Dylan Moore and James Vasquez. Marsh would catch a UF runner off guard with a throw to Vasquez on first to hand the Gators an out before closing the top of the third.
The top of the 4th saw an unusual double play made by the Knights after a Gator at-bat struck a ball towards center field, later tripping another Gator on first who staggered their run while taking second, creating the double play.
Shortstop Dylan Moore earned a spot on first base at the bottom of the 4th, later stealing second for the Knights. Moore advanced to third after a hit from right-fielder Erik Barber and soon put the first point on the board after a sac fly from Tommy Williams to right field. Barber made a close steal to second and joined Moore with UCF’s second run of the night off of a base hit from first baseman James Vasquez, bringing the score to 2-0.
UF threatened the Knights at the top of the 5th, with two bases loaded after Kyle Marsh held back a throw to second. The Gators had all of their bases loaded on the next hit and earned a run as UCF recovered the ball. Pitcher Harrison Hakuri relieved Marsh and gained a putout to prevent another UF score.
At the bottom of the 6th, center-fielder Derrick Salberg hit a single on a two-out situation, while Erik Barber earned a walk to first. Third baseman Tommy Williams approached the plate and ripped a ball to deep left, allowing Salberg and Barber to run in on his two-run double, bringing the score to 4-1.
Barber notched his second run of the night after Williams’ hit.
“He is consistent. I think that’s one word that comes to mind from last year to this year is that he’s consistent,” said head coach Terry Rooney on Barber. “He continually gets those great at-bats throughout the game and he just gets the job done… ‘Barb’ has done a great job for us and is off to another great start this year.”
At next frame, UF stocked Moore’s ball count and allowed him to walk in an attempt to out him later on.
The final inning saw the Knight’s clear UF’s first at-bat, followed by their second after a dive from Dylan Moore in deep center field, bringing the crowd of over four thousand to their feet. A pop fly to the outfield then sealed the win for UCF in their first top-ten match-up in program history.
“It was a tremendous win,” said Rooney after the game. “Tonight it took every single player on the bench [and] on the field to get this done. I want to thank everybody that came out. It was a record crowd. I really appreciate all the support of Knight Nation. It was an awesome environment.”
UCF earned their fourth win against a ranked opponent this season, the most since 2011, where they defeated five ranked teams.
The Knights (11-1) travel to Gainesville on Wednesday to face-off against the Gators (10-2) again at 7 p.m. The Knights will also face Columbia in a three-game series on Friday at 6:30 p.m. at UCF’s Jay Bergman Field.
