March 21, 2006
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - UCF used a four-run seventh inning to erase an 8-6 deficit as the Golden Knights rallied to defeat host Bethune-Cookman 10-8 Tuesday night at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. The Golden Knights clubbed 21 hits on the night, but stranded a season-high 17 runners on base in the win. UCF won its fourth straight game of the season to move to 14-10 overall while Bethune-Cookman dropped to 11-17.
With the game tied at eight in the seventh inning, senior pinch hitter Dave Lambert drilled a two-out single to center to plate the game-winning run for the Golden Knights.
All nine Golden Knight starters recorded hits, including three hits each from junior third baseman Matt Ray and freshman first baseman Kiko Vazquez. Vazquez doubled three times, scored two runs and totaled two RBI for the victors.
Junior reliever Derek Abriola (2-0) earned the victory in relief for UCF. The Orlando native struck out three Wildcats in four innings for his second win of the season.
Senior closer Dominic Petracca worked a scoreless ninth inning for his seventh save of the season.
UCF exploded for five runs on seven hits in the first inning as the Golden Knights sent 11 batters to the plate. Bethune-Cookman starting pitcher Raphael Kyles lasted just 0.2 innings as he was tagged with all five runs.
Two of the seven hits were for extra bases, as Vazquez drilled a two-run double while freshman shortstop Eric Kallstrom drove in one run with a RBI-double.
Bethune-Cookman got back into the game on one swing in the bottom of the second on a three-run home run by Colin Irvine. The Wildcats took advantage of a walk and hit batter in the second by UCF starter Taylor Meier before Irvine connected on B-CC's first hit of the night with the three-run homer.
The Wildcats tied the game at five in the third with back-to-back doubles by Alejandro Jimenez and Jorge Mico.
Bethune-Cookman erased a 5-0 deficit in the fourth on a two-run single by Chris Henault to give the Wildcats a 7-5 lead.
Ray doubled to leadoff the fifth and scored on a RBI-groundout by senior catcher Ryan Bono to close the gap to 7-6.
A wild pitch by Abriola with the bases loaded and two outs in the sixth forced in Bethune-Cookman's eighth run of the game to extend the lead to 8-6.
Freshman pinch hitter Shane Ynclan tied the game at eight in the top of the seventh with a two-run double down the line in left for the Golden Knights. UCF regained the lead later in the inning as pinch hitter Dave Lambert lined a two-out single to center to give the Golden Knights a 9-8 advantage. The big inning continued as Ray singled down the line in right to plate Lambert, giving UCF a 10-8 lead.
UCF heads to the Lone Star state this weekend for a three-game series at TCU. The series begins Friday at 8 p.m. ET in Fort Worth, Texas.
Game Notes: The start of the game was delayed 18 minutes as both teams waited on the umpires ... Ryan Bono was hit by a pitch for the 45th time in the third inning ... Bono is now tied for second in UCF history with Dee Brown in that category ... UCF improved to 2-9 on the season when trailing after six innings of play ... Dominic Petracca moved into a tie for sixth in UCF single-season history with his seventh save of the season.