LUBBOCK, Texas – The UCF baseball team will cap a seven-game road trip with a Big 12 Conference series at Texas Tech.
The league series will run Friday to Sunday at TTU’s Dan Law Field at Rip Griffen Park in Lubbock. Friday’s opener is set for 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT, while Saturday’s contest will begin at 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT and Sunday’s finale is set for 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT. All three games will air live on ESPN+ as well as on the radio at FM 96.9 The Game. Live stats can also be followed by visiting UCF.Statbroadcast.com.
The Knights will enter the series with a 25-23 overall record and currently in 13th place in the Big 12 standings with a 6-18 mark with six conference games remaining. The top 12 teams will qualify for the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship that will run May 21-24 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
The TTU series will mark UCF’s third and final stop on a current 11-day, seven-game trip that has taken the Black and Gold from Stillwater, Oklahoma to Springfield, Missouri and now to Lubbock, Texas. After dropping the first three games at Oklahoma State last weekend, the Knights responded with 11 late unanswered runs on Tuesday night to defeat Missouri State 13-2 in midweek action.
All deadlocked at 2-2 in the seventh inning, DeAmez Ross hit out a solo home run to give the Black and Gold a 3-2 lead in the top of the inning. The Knights then put up five insurance runs in the eighth and five more in the ninth to rout the Bears.
UCF totaled 17 hits in the game and Edian Espinal and Braden Calise led the way with four hits apiece and Espinal and Ross each drove in four runs. Andrew Sundean and Dylan King were next by both tallying three-hit games and two extra-base hits each. Relievers Kris Sosnowski, Dominic Castellano and Kevin Schoneboom combined to toss 5.0 innings of scoreless relief over the final five innings. The three combined to retire the last 12 batters the Black and Gold faced in the ballgame.
Prior to the Missouri State contest, UCF dropped a trio of games at OK State last weekend by scores of 12-0, 3-1 and 10-6.
Over the four games on the current road trip, the catcher King has led the way with a .455 average, three doubles, a home run and four RBIs. Calise is next with an even .400 clip, while the leadoff man Ross is batting .333 with a double, a homer, four RBIs and three runs scored. From the mound, senior Dom Stagliano has led the way on the current trip by striking out six batters over 4.0 innings of hitless and scoreless relief.
On the season, Ross leads the Knights with a .373 batting average, 75 hits, 48 runs scored and 12 stolen bases. His 75 hits are good enough to lead the Big 12 Conference and rank in the top 20 nationally. Espinal is next with a .340 clip while Andrew Williamson leads the way in the power numbers with nine home runs, 17 doubles and 45 RBIs. Sophomore right-hander Russell Sandefer leads the way from the starting rotation with a 3.07 ERA and 45 strikeouts over 41.0 innings while senior righty Alex Galvan is one of the top arms from the bullpen with a 2.59 ERA and two saves. Lefty Dominic Castellano too has good numbers with a 5-1 record, 3.76 ERA and a team-leading 54 strikeouts in 40.2 innings.
SCHEDULED STARTING PITCHERS FOR THE SERIES
A trio of sophomore right-handers will get the start on the mound for UCF this week. Camden Wicker will take the ball in game one for his sixth consecutive Friday night start (0-2, 5.33 ERA), while Russell Sandefer will get the ball in game two for the fifth straight week (2-3, 3.07 ERA) and Matt Sauser will start on Sunday for the fourth straight weekend (3-2, 3.41 ERA). Texas Tech will go with a trio of right-handers in Mac Heuer on Friday (2-2, 5.36 ERA), Tyler Boudreau Saturday (1-4, 7.65 ERA) and Zane Petty Sunday (1-3, 5.57 ERA).
ABOUT TEXAS TECH
The Red Raiders will enter the weekend with a 17-28 overall record and currently in ninth place in the Big 12 standings with an 11-13 mark. Texas Tech has won two of its last four games after taking one of three from first place West Virginia in Morgantown over the weekend and defeating New Mexico State in midweek action on Tuesday. TTU holds three conference series wins on the year with a sweep over Houston as well as taking two of three from Baylor and No. 16 Arizona. The Red Raiders were picked to finish fifth in the Big 12 this year after going 33-26 overall and placing 10th in the league standings in 2024 with a 12-17 record.
Robin Villeneuve leads TTU from the plate with a .340 batting average and team-leading tallies of 14 doubles and a .424 on-base percentage. Logan Hughes is next with a .322 average and leads the way in home runs (16), runs scored (43) and runs batted in (51). Jack Cebert is one of the team’s top pitchers with a 6-2 record, 3.28 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 46.2 innings.
Texas Tech is coached by Tim Tadlock. Tadlock is in his 13th season at the holm in Lubbock.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Friday’s opener will mark the fifth all-time meeting between the Knights and Red Raiders. UCF will enter holding a 3-1 series advantage after taking two of three from TTU in Orlando last season as well as a neutral-site victory in February of 2013. This weekend’s series will mark the Black and Gold’s inaugural trip to Lubbock.
HITTING ON ALL CYLINDERS
As a team, the Knights currently hold the 18th-best team batting average in the nation and the second-best in the Big 12 with a .313 average. UCF currently has eight players with 25 or more at-bats hitting above .300 and three batting over .325 in DeAmez Ross (.373), Edian Espinal (.340) and Andrew Sundean (.322).
THE HITMAN
One thing is for sure, when DeAmez Ross is up to bat, it is almost certain he is going to hit the ball. Ross, who leads the team with a .373 batting average, has recorded 75 hits this season, the most in the Big 12 and 18th-best nationally. He had an 18-game hitting streak recently, the longest by any UCF player this season. He also has the most multiple-hit games on the team with 22.
Ross’ play has made him a nightmare for pitchers. His 10.6 rate currently makes him the fourth-hardest player to strike out in the Big 12.
JIMENEZ NAMED TO BROOKS WALLACE AWARD WATCH LIST
In an award given to the best collegiate shortstop, UCF sophomore Antonio Jimenez was named to the Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award Watch List. Jimenez was one of 100 shortstops and one of seven from the Big 12 Conference to make the cut on April 18. He is currently batting .298 on the season and had recently reached base safely in 24 straight games. He also has 65 putouts, 104 assists and a .971 fielding percentage.
SAUSER TABBED BIG 12 CO-PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Sauser was tabbed the Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Week on April 21 going a career-long 8.0 innings while striking out a career-best eight batters en route to leading UCF to a 4-2 Saturday victory to earn the series win over the Horned Frogs. In his first weekend start as a Knight, the Florida State transfer allowed just two runs on five hits while striking out the eight batters and not issuing a walk. He faced the minimum in six of his eight innings of work, which included a stretch in which he retired 14 straight batters. Over 104 total pitches, Sauser threw 77 for strikes.
ON DECK
Following this weekend’s series, UCF will return home for its final four games of the regular season. The Knights will first home Presbyterian in midweek action on Tuesday before welcoming Baylor to town next Thursday to Saturday.
Almost that time in Texas ⏳ pic.twitter.com/EDDEJlezFk
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) May 8, 2025