Feb. 24, 2008
ORLANDO - UCF gets right back to work with one of its toughest tests of the season as the Knights are set to play host to No. 6 Missouri Monday at 3 p.m. The Tigers will serve as the third-highest ranked team to visit Jay Bergman Field since the stadium opened in 2001. No. 1 Rice visited The Berg in 2006 while No. 2 LSU trotted into Orlando in 2004.
Records:
Missouri - 3-0 Overall, 0-0 Big 12
UCF - 3-0 Overall, 0-0 Conference USA
Stadium:
Jay Bergman Field (2,230)
Series:
Missouri leads, 2-0
Radio/Video:
www.UCFAthletics.com
Live Stats:
www.UCFAthletics.com
Upcoming Opponent
Up the road in DeLand, Missouri was a perfect 3-0 as the Tigers defeated Connecticut, 7-1, Michigan State, 14-9, and Stetson, 9-5, at Stetson's Bright House Invitational last weekend. The Tigers are ranked as high as No. 6 in the Baseball America poll, and are coming off a season in which it served as one of the host schools for the NCAA Regionals. To open 2008, Missouri hit .253 as a team in DeLand, and posted 31 strikeouts in 27.0 innings on the mound. Freshman Kelly Fick is scheduled to make the start for the Tigers vs. UCF.
The Series
The only year UCF and Missouri met was in 1991 when the Tigers visited Orlando for the Dr. Pepper/UCF Classic, and Mizzou squeaked out 4-3 and 4-2 wins over the Knights for a 2-0 series advantage.
UCF vs. Florida A&M Recap
Before the season got underway, the saying went that hitting will come after pitching. But they both showed up in a three-game sweep over Florida A&M Feb. 22-24, as the Knights outscored the Rattlers 50-5. UCF racked up 17 runs on 17 hits, tying the most runs scored in a season-opening in school history, in game one's 17-1 win. UCF followed that up with 16 runs on 15 hits in a 16-2 win. The 33 runs in back-to-back games were the most by UCF since 2005, while the 32 hits were the most dating back to 2006. Completing the sweep, the Black and Gold collected a 17-2 triumph in the finale. All three starters on the weekend went at least 5.0 innings while 14 different Knights picked up an RBI.
Recent Wins Over Ranked Teams
In 2007, UCF posted three victories over ranked programs: No. 15 TCU, No. 17 Florida and No. 28 Stetson. The Knights' last win over a top-10 team came against No. 2 LSU at Jay Bergman Field, a 6-5 10-inning triumph Feb. 15, 2004.
A First for Everything
With 50 runs in the series vs. Florida A&M, UCF set a program record for runs in a three-game series. The previous mark was 47 vs. St. Joseph's March 3-5, 2001. The Knights did defeat Grace in three games by a combined score of 59-10 in 1985, however it was not a consecutive series since UCF played Delaware after game one vs. Grace.
Senior Starting Strong
Dwayne Bailey could not have opened his senior year any better than his performance vs. Florida A&M Feb. 22-24. Bailey fell just one hit shy of matching the school record for hits in a game when he went 5-for-5 in the opener. His five hits set a career-high, while he also posted a personal-best with four runs scored. Bailey eventually finished the weekend by going 10-for-15 with three extra-base hits, a .933 slugging percentage, a sacrifice hit and three stolen bases.
A Dynamic Trio
In the season-opener, Jaager Good went 5.2 solid innings for the victory over FAMU Feb. 22, giving up only two hits and struck out eight. Kyle Sweat followed that up with 5.0 scoreless innings, surrendering only three hits and striking out a career-high eight batters. To conclude the series vs. the Rattlers, Mitch Herold went 5.0 innings with six strikeouts for the victory.
More Notes on Starting Pitching
All three starting pitchers in the series vs. FAMU lasted at least 5.0 innings. Last season, it was not until games 16, 17 and 18 that UCF earned at least 5.0 innings out of its starters in three-straight games.
The First Long Ball
Junior Chadd Hartman came aboard as a pinch-runner in the fifth-inning vs. FAMU Feb. 24, and when he made his first plate appearance in the seventh inning, he capitalized. On the first pitch he saw, Hartman ripped an offering from Eddie Thomas over the right-field fence for a three-run homer, the first for UCF on the 2008 season. It was Hartman's third of his career and first since May 20, 2006, at Southern Miss.