Feb. 22, 2012
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By Andrew Jennette
UCFAthletics.com
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Coming off a difficult weekend in San Diego, Calif., the UCF softball team looks to get back to .500 as it faces its first true road game of the season when it travels to Tallahassee to take on the No. 25 Florida State Seminoles at 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
Since their rivalry began in 2002, UCF and Florida State have battled each other on the diamond 15 times, with the Seminoles holding a 10-5 advantage over the Knights. The squads last faced off in 2011, with UCF defeating the Seminoles in their final at-bat, 2-1, at the UCF Softball Complex.
Senior Vanessa Perez (San Diego, Calif.) was a part of that big victory last season as she reached base with two outs during the Knights' final rally and scored the game-tying run. Perez spoke to UCFAthletics.com about that game and what she expects the rest of this season.
"We battled back in the seventh inning last year. We showed the kind of fire in that game that we really needed to show the whole year and that we need to have for this season," Perez explained. "We fought hard last week and we know we have the capability to win against elite competition. We just need to learn from our mistakes and understand that we have to have the same focus and intensity against every team in every inning."
UCF fans can listen to the action online via Knights All-Access with the play-by-play radio voice of the Knights, Eric Lopez. Fans can also follow all the action on UCFAthletics.com's Gametracker as well as www.twitter.com/UCF_Softball.
UCF is coming off a difficult showing in San Diego. Despite being in every contest until the final at-bat, the Knights dropped all five of their games at the 22nd Annual Campbell/Cartier Classic. There were, however, many positives to be taken from the trip. Despite the lack of success on the field, head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie was upbeat about the progress that was made and her team's potential for the rest of the season.
"Even though it does not show in the win/loss column, last weekend really showed our coaches and our team where we are as a program. We went up against Washington and their No. 1 pitcher as well as UCLA and their No. 1 pitcher and we earned some respect from the coaches and fans of those West-Coast teams. Our players have all the capabilities to beat elite teams like that," Gillispie said. "Now as we look ahead to Wednesday's game against Florida State and down the road into conference play, it makes all of our players believe that as long as we play our game and have that fire to drive through the last two innings, we can do more than just compete, we can defeat anyone."
The Black and Gold enters the contest against FSU with a 4-5 record on the season. The Knights have showcased elite pitching throughout the entire season with freshman Mackenzie Audas (Plant City, Fla.) and senior Ali Schmidt (Cordova, Md.) leading the way. Schmidt is currently 1-1 with one save and she leads the team with a 1.05 ERA in 20 innings pitched. Audas has been even more dominant, as she sports a 2-3 record with a 1.15 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 36.2 innings pitched. Audas is currently leading Conference USA in innings pitched, qualified ERA, batting average against and strikeouts. Junior Alex Hartshorn (Tampa, Fla.) has earned a 1-1 record in two starts for the Knights.
Florida State (9-0) has been paced by timely hitting through the early portion of the 2012 season. FSU wrapped up a perfect 4-0 record last weekend at the second Seminole Classic, defeating Mercer by a 3-0 score on Sunday. Junior third baseman Briana Hamilton has gotten off to a good start in FSU's first nine games, hitting .417 with three home runs, seven RBI, two doubles and one triple. The Woodruff, S.C., native is 10-for-24 thus far, and also leads the Seminoles with 23 total bases.
FSU is off to its best start since the 2004 squad began the year 11-0. In the school's history, FSU's current start of 9-0 is tied for the seventh-best ever.
The Black and Gold will play 30 home games at the UCF Softball Complex, with the 2012 home-opener slated for Feb. 24 against Seton Hall. Season tickets for the 2012 season cost only $40 and are general admission. Single-game tickets are also available for $5 for adults, $2 for UCF faculty/staff, youth and seniors, and $3 for groups of 20 or more. To purchase single game or season tickets, call the UCF Ticket Office at (407) 823-1000.