April 4, 2008
Saturday's Preview in PDF Format
HOUSTON, Texas (www.ucfathletics.com) - On a wet evening in Texas, the No. 25 UCF baseball team fell to Houston, 5-3, Friday at Cougar Field in game one of a three-game Conference USA series. The Knights' fifth-straight loss dropped their record to 22-9 overall and 2-5 in league play.
Junior starter Kyle Sweat gave UCF 7.0 strong innings against Houston (17-10, 3-1), scattering nine hits and striking out four. He allowed just three earned runs as he took the loss to fall to 3-2. With the stick, junior Robert Lara tied a career-high with three hits and added a RBI.
UCF's first-inning struggles continued in Houston as the Cougars opened up a 2-0 lead on three-straight two-out hits off Sweat, capped off by a two-run triple from Matt Murphy. It was the fifth-consecutive game an opponent scored in the first inning.
The Cougars then broke it open in the fourth on a RBI double from Blake Kelso and a pair of unearned runs with two outs to make it 5-0. UCF did get to starting pitcher Wes Musick in the sixth, putting runners at first and second with nobody out on singles from sophomores Shane Brown and Chris Duffy. The UH hurler got the first two outs but senior Tyson Auer ripped the first pitch he saw to right field to plate Brown, and Lara brought in Duffy with a hard single to left field to trim the deficit to 5-2.
When the ninth rolled around, the Knights tried to rally again, this time vs. reliever Chase Dempsay. Auer and Lara led off with back-to-back hits, and junior Colin Arnold did cut it to 5-3 on a RBI infield single with two outs. However, the right-hander induced Brown to ground out to first to close out the UH win.
The two squads return to the field for game two Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Season tickets as well as single-game tickets to check out UCF baseball this year are currently available by contacting the UCF Ticket Office at 407-823-1000, or by going online at www.ucfathletics.com, the official site for UCF varsity sports. Also check out UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Game Notes
No. 25 UCF - 22-9 Overall, 2-5 Conference USA
Houston - 17-10 Overall, 3-1 Conference USA
WP: Wes Musick (6-1), 6.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 8 K
LP: Kyle Sweat (3-2), 7.0 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
- First pitch of Friday's game was delayed by 53 minutes due to rain.
- The five-game slide is UCF's longest losing streak in a season since the Knights lost nine in a row in 2006.
- Before Tyson Auer's RBI single in the sixth, UCF was 9 for its last 48 (.188) with runners in scoring position.
- Eric Kallstrom's hitting streak improved to six games.
- Cody Allen pitched just one inning Friday, but dazzled by striking out the side in the eighth inning. The freshman now has 26 strikeouts in 19.0 innings.