April 7, 2011
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By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Coming off a late 4-3 win at No. 4 Florida Tuesday, UCF is back home to tangle with Tulane in a three-game series beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m. The first 300 fans Saturday will receive a free pack of UCF baseball trading cards, and it also will be Kids Club Day at the park.
Schedule:
Friday - Orlando, Fla. - 6:30 p.m.
Saturday - Orlando, Fla. - 4 p.m.
Sunday - Orlando, Fla. - 12 p.m.
Records:
Tulane - 18-11 Overall, 1-5 C-USA
UCF - 20-9 Overall, 2-4 C-USA
Stadium:
Jay Bergman Field (2,230)
Series:
Tulane Leads, 11-10
Live Coverage:
740-AM, UCFAthletics.com and Twitter.com/UCF_Baseball
Upcoming Ticket Deals
-Saturday Family 4 Pack - Four tickets, four dogs, four drinks and four popcorns for $40.
-On Sunday, youth in their little league jerseys get in free, while kids can run the bases after the game and fans can also play Baseball Bingo.
-When UCF hosts Florida Atlantic April 19 and Florida April 20, fans can purchase the Sunshine State 2-Pack which features a ticket to both games for just $12.
-For the season - Pick 5 Pack - pick any five games for just $30.
Upcoming Opponent
-Although it opened up with a 17-4 record, the injury bug has hit Tulane this year as the Green Wave have lost their last six games to hold an 18-11 record.
-Tulane went 1-2 in a road series at Southern Miss before dropping all three games at home to Houston last weekend.
-Catcher Jeremy Schaffer is once again having a dynamic season, hitting .382 with 17 doubles for a squad that has a .258 team average.
-Senior Conrad Flynn will make his eighth start of the year Friday and boasts a 2.81 ERA with just five walks in 41.2 innings.
The Series
-The road team has taken two of three in each of the past two seasons after UCF combined to score 39 runs last year in New Orleans to pick up a pair of victories.
-In that series in 2010, UCF hit .425 highlighted by Darnell Sweeney being named national hitter of the week by going 11-for-13 against the Green Wave.
-Tulane currently holds a slim 11-10 lead in the series.
The Lowdown on Brian Adkins
-As a freshman, southpaw Brian Adkins received starts in several key games, including in the season finale vs. Tulane.
-This weekend, though, will mark his first-career Friday-night start and his second weekend start overall.
-It will be the lefty's first start since March 22 at Miami where he went 6.0 innings but got tagged with the loss.
-Adkins' ERA has remained under 2.60 all season long as it currently stands at 2.57. He also holds a 4-2 record.
Against All Odds
-It was a series of highs and lows for UCF in its battle at No. 4 Florida April 5.
-Going behind 2-0 in the first inning, an effort of six pitchers from the pen combined to toss the final 7.0 innings with just six hits against and one walk.
-After Ryan Breen and Erik Hempe hit solo homers, UF would score the go-ahead run in the eighth inning by capitalizing on a Darnell Sweeney error.
-Down 3-2 and facing one of the nation's best closers in Anthony DeSclafani, Sweeney got his revenge. When Beau Taylor and Breen got on base, Sweeney drove a two-out double to dead center to take a 4-3 lead. Ronnie Richardson then entered to pitch a 1-2-3 ninth for his first save.
Wanting More Action
-As if hitting near the top of the lineup and chasing down fly balls in center field is not enough, sophomore Ronnie Richardson has taken on another roll in 2011.
-The 5-foot-7 right-hander made his first appearance on the mound vs. Wagner March 11 and proceeded to toss a scoreless inning with two strikeouts. He then finished an 8-2 win over Stetson by retiring the final two batters.
-However his role was a little more dramatic at No. 4 Florida April 5. After the Knights took a 4-3 lead in the top of the ninth, Richardson faced the 2-4 hitters and used 15 pitches to retire the side in order with two strikeouts.
-Richardson has not allowed a run in 2.2 innings, striking out five, while not walking a batter and earning a save.
Useless Stat of the Day
-UCF is 2-0 when Derek Luciano hits sixth in the batting order.
Big Victories in 2011
-UCF has a 2-0 record against the SEC with wins over No. 4 Florida and No. 29 Alabama.
-The victory over the Gators was the Knights' fourth victory over a top-five team since 2008.
-The Black and Gold is 5-5 overall against ranked teams.
-With a possible five more games remaining against ranked foes, a total of 27 percent (15-of-56 games) of the Knights' 2011 schedule could be against ranked teams.
-Last year UCF faced only three nationally-ranked programs.
RPI News & Notes
-The NCAA released its first official RPI report early this week and UCF was No. 32.
-After the win over Florida, the Knights moved to No. 24 in the BoydsWorld.com RPI.