March 15, 2015
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By Nate Blythe
UCFKnights.com
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ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - No. 6 UCF registered 18 hits including a grand slam by senior first baseman James Vasquez in the fourth inning to complete the sweep against Fairfield, 16-10, Sunday at the UCF Baseball Complex. Sophomore designated hitter Matt Diorio capped a seven-run second inning with a three-run homer to put the Knights in the lead, 7-5, after the Stags scored five times in the top-half.
"It was a tremendous team win for us on Championship Sunday," head coach Terry Rooney said. "The guys once again got it done and did a terrific job. The difference in the game was that swing inning, when we gave up five and comeback and score seven. As I have talked about all along, our offense has been outstanding."
The performance of the afternoon for UCF (17-4) was registered by senior shortstop Dylan Moore, who went 4-for-5 with a triple, two RBI and three runs scored along with three stolen bases. The Yorba Linda, Calif., native tallied 13 hits (.565 avg./.583 on-base/1.174 slugging) including four homers and drove in 10 runs during the week. He also ranks among the top players in the country with 31 RBI on the season.
A career-best three hits were notched by senior left fielder JoMarcos Woods. He recorded a two-run single up the middle in the fifth and added a double to left center in the seventh inning.
Freshman Eric Hepple (2-1) registered the victory in relief, notching three strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings of work. Two punch outs in 2 2/3 innings were recorded by senior lefty Parker Thomas, while seniors Spencer Davis, Tanner Olson and sophomore Drew Faintich also made appearances.
With a single in the second inning, senior third baseman Tommy Williams, who went 2-for-4, extend his hitting streak to 18 games and drove in a pair of runs. Diorio finished the afternoon with two hits, four RBI and two walks.
A pair of base knocks were also picked up by senior right fielder Erik Barber and catcher Jordan Savinon. UCF drew a season-high nine walks with senior center fielder Derrick Salberg accounting for three of them.
Fairfield (0-8) struck for five runs in the second inning on a pair of hits.
"As soon as we got into the dugout, coach was saying that we need to respond right now," said Diorio. "We came back by taking quality at bats and bunching them together to score runs. It was a big part of the game and shows that we can come back when we are down."
The Knights responded by pushing 12-consecutive runs across the plate in the next two frames. UCF batted around in second inning and scored seven times on nine hits. The grand slam by Vasquez completed the scoring for the Knights in the third inning.
"The grand slam felt good, especially since I have not gotten off to a great start," said Vasquez. "The past few days I have worked hard with coach Klosty [Ryan Klosterman] and coach [Kevin] Schnall in the cages. I have been feeling good in the box and hitting the ball hard."
Fairfield was paced by Sebastian Salvo with three hits and four RBI, while Brendan Tracy and Alex Witkus each added two hits and two RBI each. The loss was handed to start Mike Wallace (0-2).
UCF finishes up a three-game mid-week series with Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in Daytona Beach. The Knights took the first two meetings, 10-2 and 18-8.
The Knights return to the UCF Baseball Complex on Friday at 6:30 p.m. to start a three-game series with Presbyterian. Saturday's contest begins at 4 p.m., while the finale on Sunday is set for 1 p.m.
Single-game tickets for the 2015 baseball season are currently on sale by clicking here or calling 407-823-1000.