March 3, 2012
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By Eric DeSalvo
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The No. 19 UCF baseball team used a three-run sixth inning to erase a 4-2 deficit to Siena, and eventually earned a 6-4 victory over the Saints (1-9) Saturday afternoon from the UCF baseball complex.
The Knights (9-2), winners of their last five, pounded out 10-plus hits for the fourth-straight contests as junior shortstop Darnell Sweeney extended his hitting streak to eight with a single in the third.
Junior catcher/third baseman Chris Taladay (Windermere, Fla.) ended the afternoon going 3-4 at the dish with a RBI. It was the third three-hit game for Taladay in 2012.
"We are a very strong offensive team and we are always going to hit," Taladay said after the game. "If we are down, we know we are going to come through and get the job done."
Facing a 4-2 deficit in the bottom of the sixth, the Knights' bats came alive as the second-half of the order produced three runs on four hits to put UCF in the lead for good.
Left fielder Ryan Breen (Palm City, Fla.) got the action started with a single through the right side and had senior right fielder Alex Friedrich move him to third after the Orlando native connected on his seventh double of the year. Junior Nick Carrillo (Glendale, Ariz.), who has notched four RBI in his last three contests, added two more with a first-pitch single to right field to plate Breen and Friedrich. Senior Travis Shreve (Auburn, Wash.) brought him home with his fifth double of the year to give the Knights a 5-4 advantage.
UCF continued its recent seventh-inning scoring binge as Breen ripped a RBI triple down the right-field line to bring home Taladay. It was the second-career three-bagger for Breen.
The Knights' late-inning relievers shined once again as junior Roman Madrid (Victoria, Texas) retired four batters on just six pitches to allow fellow junior Joe Rogers (Winter Haven, Fla.) a chance at his 19th-career save. Rogers didn't disappoint as he retired the Saints in order on just nine pitches in the top of the ninth to preserve win.
"The backend of the bullpen all the way around has really done a great job, especially Jimmy (Reed) and then me and Joe right after each other shutting it down," Madrid said. "There aren't many one-two combos like that in any conference."
UCF will look for its 17th-straight win against Siena Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. The game can be seen live on CBS All-Access.
News and Notes
-Richardson, Friedrich and Sweeney have reached safely in all 11 games during the 2012 season
-D.J. Hicks is currently working on a five-game hitting streak as he has registered at least one base knock in all but two games
-UCF has scored 19 runs during the seventh inning this year, including 13 in its last three home games combined
-Madrid was quite effective Saturday afternoon, inducing a four-pitch eighth inning