April 7, 2006
ORLANDO - Junior pitcher Tim Bascom tossed a two-hit, complete-game shutout to lead host UCF to an 8-0 victory over East Carolina Friday evening at Jay Bergman Field. Bascom faced just two batters over the minimum en route to UCF's second consecutive shutout.
The win marked UCF's first Conference USA victory at home. The Golden Knights moved to 20-13 overall and 3-1 in C-USA while the Pirates fell to 19-13, 2-5 in league play.
For the second straight game, a UCF pitcher threw a complete-game shutout. Bascom's two-hitter was the first by a Golden Knight since Matt Fox limited Georgia State to two hits in May of 2004.
"Tim was in charge all night long," stated UCF head coach Jay Bergman. "He kept his pitch count low and pitched ahead in the count all night."
Freshman right fielder Chadd Hartman made his first appearance since February 25 after missing 24 games with a broken bone in his hand. Hartman had a big night at the plate, going 2-for-4 with his first career triple and a personal-best three RBI.
"It just feels great to be back," commented Hartman. "I am glad Coach Bergman gave me a shot to get back in the lineup."
UCF scored one run in the second before scoring four in the fourth and three in the fifth to blow the game open.
In the fourth, sophomore left fielder Matt Lambert had the key hit in the frame with a two-run single through the right side to put UCF in front 3-0.
In the fifth, Hartman tripled to right center to plate a pair of runs and later scored on a balk to give the Golden Knights an 8-0 lead.
The eight runs were more than enough for Bascom, who retired the final 14 batters he faced. He finished with nine strikeouts and moved to 5-2 on the season.
UCF outhit the Pirates 11-2. Freshman first baseman Kiko Vazquez finished 2-for-2 with three runs scored and senior designated hitter Dave Lambert added three hits and a RBI for the victors. Matt Lambert also finished 2-for-4 with two RBI.
The three-game series resumes Saturday evening at 6:30 p.m.
Game Notes: UCF head coach Jay Bergman announced prior to the game that freshman outfielder Shane Ynclan was suspended for one game due to a violation of team policy ... Tim Bascom lowered his season ERA to 1.22 with the complete-game shutout ... it was the fourth complete game of Bascom's career and his second complete-game shutout ... with nine strikeouts, Bascom moved past current pitching coach Craig Cozart into seventh place in UCF history with 207 strikeouts.