Feb. 25, 2007
Baton Rouge, La. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Thanks to some timely hitting and a sensational outing by its pitching staff, the UCF baseball team edged LSU 5-4 Sunday in Baton Rouge, La. The victory was head coach Jay Bergman's 1,160th-career win, which moved him into 20th on the NCAA Division I all-time coaching list.
UCF (4-7) starter Jaager Good set a career-high with five strikeouts while pitching 5.0 innings without giving up an earned run. Matt McClung (1-0) received his first career victory, throwing 2.0 innings of perfect baseball, and Justin Weiss recorded his second save of the season by picking up the final five outs. Leading the way for the UCF offense, Tyson Auer went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and two runs scored against the Tigers (7-3).
Auer, who was serving as the UCF leadoff hitter for the first time since Feb. 10, quickly got the game started with a single between second and third and promptly stole second off lefty Kyle Beerbohm. Following a ground out that pushed Auer to third, Chadd Hartman walked. Steve Stropp strode to the plate and placed a single just out of the reach of Blake Dean's diving glove in left, driving in Auer for the day's first run. Now with Hartman at third, Kiko Vazquez ripped the first pitch he saw into right for a sacrifice fly, plating Hartman for a 2-0 lead.
In the bottom of the first, two singles allowed the Tigers to earn a couple of early baserunners with nobody away. Good picked up the first out by sitting Dean down on strikes, but a passed ball and two errors paved the way for LSU to even the score at 2-2. UCF allowed the home team to take a 4-2 advantage the next inning with two more unearned runs.
When the Knights returned to the plate in the third, Auer once again got aboard, this time on a double down the line in left. Matt Horwath eased Auer to third on a sacrifice bunt, and after falling behind in the count 0-2, Hartman connected on a 2-2 pitch for a RBI single to right. UCF, though, would leave the tying run at second in both the third and fourth innings.
Each team was held in check from the fourth to the sixth frames. That was when UCF attempted to rally in the seventh. Eric Kallstrom kicked it off with an infield single and Dwayne Bailey walked. Auer came through with a perfect sacrifice bunt down the third-base line to move both runners into scoring position. Horwath came through for the Knights, tying things at 4-4 on a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Kallstrom from third.
UCF was not done. In the eighth, Vazquez reached on a one-out single and moved to second thanks to Ryan Williams laying down a sacrifice bunt. Ryan Richardson replaced Vazquez at second, and following the switch, Shane Brown provided the Knights with a two-out RBI, sending a double just inside the line in left. Brown's hit gave UCF its first lead of the game at 5-4.
While the Black and Gold was busy making a comeback, McClung was stellar in relief. The junior righty retired all six batters he faced in the sixth and seventh stanzas. LSU managed to get a runner at second in the eighth and ninth stanzas, only to see the UCF bullpen lock down the win.
A 17-game homestand awaits the UCF baseball team, as the Knights return to Jay Bergman Field for a 6:30 p.m. meeting with Michigan Tuesday. Fans are encouraged to "Jam the Jay" to take part in plenty of promotional activities before and during the game. For the latest news and information on the Golden Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF athletics.
Game Notes
WP: Matt McClung (1-0), 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
LP: Jared Bradford (1-1), 2.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
- UCF stayed undefeated on Sundays (4-0) this season.
- The victory was UCF's first-ever at Alex Box Stadium (1-6).
- With today's start, Jaager Good was the only UCF pitcher to make a start in each of the last three weekend series.