The UCF baseball team bested Jacksonville 10-1 on Cancer Awareness Knight at the UCF Baseball Complex Tuesday. With the win, the Knights also lock up the season series with the Dolphins 3-1.
UCF officially kicked off a month-long fundraising effort Tuesday, to support the cancer research arm of Florida Hospital. The effort is in memory of Joe Skinner, a UCF commit from nearby Bishop Moore High School who passed away in April 2016 from a rare form leukemia.
“It was tough for a few of us because we knew Joe really well,” freshman Rylan Thomas said. “This felt like a sign that he is watching over us and that he is here with us every day. It was just awesome to come out here and get him a win.”
As part of their uniforms, Knights players donned colors representing the cancer or disease that had most effected them or their loved ones. The fundraising campaign will culminate on April 28 when the team hosts Memphis at the UCF Baseball Complex, and the final donated amount will be announced. Click here to join the team in the fight against cancer.
On the field, the Knights got on the board early, posting two runs in the both the third and fourth innings. Thomas had a key double in the third and scored the second run of the inning.
In the fourth, Jacksonville cut the lead in half with a solo home run, but it would be the only time the Dolphins would score.
UCF came right back in the bottom half of the inning, as short stop Kam Gellinger layed down a sacrifice bunt, moving two runners into scoring position. Catcher Anthony George then singled in a run before third baseman Brooks Morgan pushed in another with a bunt of his own.
The Black and Gold stretched its lead with a two-out rally in the sixth. Morgan got things started with a single to left before center fielder Luke Hamblin got on base with a walk. Thomas then stepped up to the plate and crushed the first pitch he saw for a three-run homer. The ball sailed well over the fence in left field, giving the Knights a 7-1 advantage.
UCF added another run in the seventh and two more in the eighth, before closer Bryce Tucker came on to finish things up in the ninth. Tucker faced just three hitters and struck two, including the final batter of the game.
The win is the 20th of the Greg Lovelady era and the team has just six losses on the season.
Knights by the Numbers
· Infielder Matthew Mika extended his hitting streak to 12 games, the longest of any Knight this season.
· Mika went 4-for-5 with 1 RBI and 1 run and stole 2 bases. He now has 13 on the season.
· Thomas notched a team-best 6th home run of the season and leads the Knights with 29 RBIs.
· Thomas went 3-for-5 on the night with 4 RBIs and 2 runs scored.
· After starting 6 games with 3 no-decisions, Chris Williams notched his first win of the season.
· Tucker now has notched 32 strikeouts and 5 saves in just 15.1 innings of work.
· Jason Bahr shined in relief, striking out 4 hitters in 1.2 innings, including back-to-back strikeouts when he entered the game with the bases loaded in the 6th inning.
Next up, the Knights begin American Athletic Conference play when Houston comes to town for a three-game series Mar. 31 through April 2.
Article provided and written by UCF Athletics.