March 14, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - In game one of a doubleheader Saturday, the UCF baseball team surrendered four unearned runs in the eighth inning to fall to Hartford, 7-3. The Knights (5-10) get right back to work when they face Northern Iowa tonight at 6:30 p.m.
Senior Caleb Graham controlled Hartford (1-5) in his 5.2-inning performance. The righty matched a career-high with eight strikeouts while giving up five hits. The only two runs he allowed were on a two-out bloop single in the third inning.
UCF went to work in the first inning, started up when junior Shane Brown was plunked by a pitch from Ben Sobocinski. Later with two outs, senior Brandon Romans dug in and immediately sent the first pitch he saw just over the fence in left field. His two-run blast was his fourth homer of 2009.
Graham quickly got through the first two frames only to surrender a two-out, two-run single to Mike Amendola in the third. After that base hit, Graham retired nine-straight hitters before two Hawks got aboard with two down in the sixth. That was when UCF went to the pen in favor of junior Cory Weech, who used three pitches to get Matt Walker to fly out to center, ending the inning still tied at 2-2.
Hartford attempted again in the sixth vs. sophomore Evan Stobbs and this time succeeded when Brady Stouffer ripped an 0-2 pitch with two outs through the left side for the RBI single. They held on to the lead in the bottom half as the Knights could not capitalize on a leadoff double from senior Eric Kallstrom, eventually leaving the bases loaded.
The Knights filled them up once again with two down in the eighth. Cory Beahm fell behind Brown, 2-0, picked up a strike, but witnessed the third baseman hammer the next offering into left field for the game-tying single, driving in freshman Jake Huxtable.
While the game may have been tied heading into the ninth, UCF committed two crucial errors in the field to enable the Hawks to score four unearned runs and take the lead for good.
Baseball season and single game tickets are on sale now for the 2009 campaign. Call the UCF Ticket Office at (407) 823-1000 for more information. Fans may also visit UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, and is the home of UCF's online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Game Notes
Hartford - 1-5 overall
UCF - 5-10 overall
WP: Ben Sobocinski (1-1), 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K
LP: Evan Stobbs (0-1), 3.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
-Saturday marks the first time since 1998 that UCF plays a regular-season doubleheader against two different teams.
-Junior Shane Brown batted leadoff for the first time in his career Saturday vs. Hartford.
-Brown was hit by a pitch in the first and third innings, giving him 21 for his career and moving him into a tie for seventh on the UCF all-time list.
-Josh Siebenaler, Stephen Branca and Colin Arnold were sidelined due to injuries.
-Caleb Graham's eight strikeouts were the most by a UCF pitcher this year.