Feb. 8, 2005
ORLANDO - Sophomore Courtney Propst finished 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBI to lead No. 24 UCF past Bethune-Cookman 7-1 Tuesday afternoon at Jay Bergman Field. The win was No. 100 for UCF at Jay Bergman Field since the ballpark opened in 2001. UCF is 100-35 (.740) since the state-of-the-art facility was built.
The Golden Knights raised their record to 3-0 with the win while Bethune-Cookman (0-4) remained winless on the season.
The Golden Knights parlayed one run in the first, third and fifth innings before breaking the game open with a three-run seventh and an additional run in the eighth.
Senior Darren Newlin pitched 5.0 innings and allowed one run with six strikeouts for his first victory of the season. Sophomore reliever Derek Abriola followed with three innings of shutout relief, yielding just one hit with one strikeout for the victors.
UCF scored first in the first inning on a RBI-double to the wall in left field by UCF junior catcher Drew Butera. Butera had a strong day with the bat, going 2-for-4 with a RBI.
The Golden Knights added another run in the third on a sacrifice fly by senior left fielder Dee Brown. Brown was one of three Golden Knights to produce two RBI on the day along with Propst and sophomore shortstop Matt Ray.
The Wildcats avoided the shutout in the fourth on a RBI groundout by Miguel Mercedes.
A RBI-double by Brown in the fifth pushed the lead to 3-1 before the three-run seventh. Propst had the big hit in the frame with a two-run double to left and Ray added a run-scoring single to center to build the UCF lead to 6-1.
UCF totaled season-highs in runs (7), hits (14) and RBI (7) in the victory.
The Golden Knights continue their nine-game homestand to open the season Friday with a day-night doubleheader vs. LeMoyne. Game one Friday is set for 1 p.m. while the nightcap is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Friday evening.
UCF is scheduled to start junior right-hander Mike Billek in game one and junior right-hander Ray Rodriguez in the second game.