ORLANDO, Fla. – On the strength of a Thursday evening doubleheader sweep of the visiting Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs, the No. 22 UCF softball team achieved quite a bit.
After the few narrow losses and just-barely-missed opportunities against some of the top programs in the nation throughout last weekend in Clearwater, as well as the walk-off defeat UCF suffered at the hands of the Stetson Hatters Wednesday evening, the Knights can breathe easy again knowing that their 8-0 and 10-2 run-rule victories at the UCF Softball Complex Thursday represented something of a reset button on their season, now even at 7-7, as well as delivered a historic victory for the woman at the helm, as head coach Cindy Ball-Malone secured the 250th win of her nine-year coaching career following the day's opener.
"It's definitely what we needed," said head coach Cindy Ball-Malone. "We needed that momentum. I think the things that we're talking about the most are that they're happening early. We're getting through a lot of different experiences, and what's going to make us better in the next 30 days, the next 60 days, up until June."
UCF rode a dominant start by junior right-hander Grace Jewell and a fast offensive start that the team continued to build upon to their comfortable 8-0 win in Game 1 of the Knights Classic tournament Thursday afternoon, marking the team's second shutout win of the season and first since Sarah Willis, Angelina DeVoe and Kaitlyn Felton combined to shut out the Ohio State Buckeyes 1-0 Feb. 11.
"My offense really had me, and my defense had my back. I just wanted to do whatever I could to get us back in the dugout," Jewell said. "It was a really big win for us, it's a new season now after those two wins."
Jewell worked around a leadoff single in the top of the first inning of Game 1, retiring the next three hitters in order before the UCF offense exploded for five runs in the home half of the frame.
Jada Cody followed a leadoff Micaela Macario single with her team-leading fourth homer of the season to left-center field, a long ball that marked also marked the 29th of her Knights career to bring her to within four homers of tying Jania Shinhoster's 33 for second place on the UCF all-time list.
Savannah Adams took her turn later in the frame with Shannon Doherty standing on first, and a ground ball off her bat to the Runnin' Bulldogs shortstop took a fortuitous bounce to the outfield and allowed the Knights first baseman to score UCF's third run.
UCF wasn't finished, as Katie Burge, in the starting lineup for the first time this season, swatted a 2-2 offering to the right-center field wall, driving home Adams with her second triple in four games and her first since her Feb. 19 three-bagger became the catalyst for UCF's primetime win over Mississippi State in the Clearwater Invitational Finale.
Shortstop Jasmine Williams plated UCF's fifth run of the frame with a groundout to second, scoring Burge, and the early support was more than enough for Jewell.
The Chesapeake, Virginia, native was in complete command of the affairs throughout an afternoon start that marked the most efficient of her young campaign. Including the final two outs of the first inning, Jewell retired eight straight hitters before working her way out of a two-on, one-out jam in the fourth. She cruised through the remainder of her start, throwing a season-high six innings in her first complete game of the year, with a little help from Cody's two-run triple in the bottom of the sixth that ended the game due to the eight-run run rule.
Jewell's six frames marked her deepest start since her seven-inning complete game shutout of DePaul nearly a year ago to the day, Feb. 26, 2022. Cody's triple marked her second of the season and punctuated a four-RBI day for the utility player, pushing her career RBI total to 130 and one shy of tying Jazmine Esparza (131) for fourth-most on the UCF all-time list.
"I was just seeing her pitches really well," Cody said of her first-inning homer. "I've been working on my swing a little more this season and this past week, so I just felt good in the box and I was just confident in the box up there."
The duo of freshman Aubrey Evans and junior Sarah Willis starred offensively in the nightcap in support of starter Kaitlyn Felton, not 24 hours removed from tossing 6.1 dominant innings in the Knights' loss at Stetson the previous night.
Felton showed no signs of fatigue, though, allowing just two runs (one earned) in four strong frames of work. Evans received the start in the leadoff spot in Game 2 and made the most of her opportunity, going 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored. Her evening performance built upon her solid body of work in Game 1, and the freshman completed the day with a 2-for-4 resume that included three runs scored and a trio of walks.
"When I saw that, I was like, 'man, what can I do for my team?'" Evans recalled of seeing her name in the leadoff spot. "I just want to see a bunch of at-bats, because I just want to get on base, do my job, do what was best for the team, and I did just that. I saw as many pitches as I could, got the leadoff walk, so I was really happy with that."
Willis put the game out of reach with her third home run of the season, a three-run shot over the center field batter's eye to punctuate the Knights' six-run first inning that led to another comfortable eight-run victory.
UP NEXT
The Knights will continue play in the 2023 Knights Classic tournament Friday evening, in the last of five games hosted at the UCF Softball Complex. The Knights will match up with the (RV) Louisville Cardinals, with first pitch slated for 7 p.m.
