May 16, 2015
UCF Athletics Social Media Directory
By Megan Herboth
UCFKnights.com
UCF - South Carolina Box Score
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) -- The UCF softball team reached a pair of milestones in a 5-2 win over South Carolina at JoAnne Graf Field on Saturday afternoon.
UCF improved to 50-8 overall, setting a program record for the most wins in a season, and advancing to the regional finals for the second straight season.
"We are very excited about being in tomorrow's game," UCF head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie said. "South Carolina is a very tough team, so we knew going into that we had to play our best game. Mackenzie (Audas) did a great job on the mound keeping them off balance. I think it was good to see us coming up with the big hits for this game that we needed."
Senior Mackenzie Audas' first strikeout of the game made UCF the first pitching staff to have a pair of 20-win and 250-strikeout pitchers since North Carolina's Lisa Norris and Danielle Spaulding in 2009. Audas fanned five in her 24th win in the circle.
South Carolina took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third. After Ansley Ard walked, she came around to score on Kaylea Snaer's single down the left field line.
The Knights wasted little time responding. Senior Farrah Sullivan opened the fourth inning with a base hit, which junior Jessica Ujvari followed with a single of her own. Sophomore Brittany Solis advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt and junior Kalyn Cenal loaded the bases with a bunt.
Junior Samantha McCloskey tied the game with a line drive up the middle that scored Sullivan. Freshman Courtney Rotton came in to pinch hit and gave the Knights a 3-1 lead with a single down the left field line.
UCF added two more runs in the inning on a single up the middle from sophomore Linnea Goodman. The Knights score five runs while sending 11 batters to the plate in the top of the fourth inning.
The Gamecocks used a single and a hit batsmen to put runners in scoring position in the bottom of the seventh. Snaer's RBI single up the middle cut UCF's lead to 5-2, but a ground out and a strikeout sealed UCF's 5-2 win.
UCF Softball, which is presented by City Kia of Greater Orlando, faces Florida State at noon on Sunday. If the Knights win that game, they will play a second game immediately after. The winner of the if necessary game will advance to face the winner of the Knoxville Regional in the Super Regionals.