March 13, 2016
Final Stats
03-13-16 - UCF vs. LIU Brooklyn - Images by UCF Knights
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - Junior left fielder Austin Griffin connected on his second grand slam of the season in the fourth frame as the Knights earned the sweep of LIU Brooklyn on Championship Sunday with a 12-7 victory at the UCF Baseball Complex.
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"I was really trying to get the ball to the outfield in that situation and barreled it up," Griffin said. "That is all that I was really trying to do and getting a grand slam out of it was a little bit extra."
Griffin finished the afternoon with two hits, five RBI and three runs scored. A trio of runs were driven in by junior right fielder Eli Putnam on two singles. The Knights (10-7) totaled 11 hits and each starter notched a base knock in the contest.
"The story of the game was our hitters. They did a terrific job," head coach Terry Rooney said. "We had numerous two-out RBI. To me, a two-out RBI is all about toughness and we showed that all the way to the end. We gave up three in the eighth inning and came right back with some good quality at bats late in the game leading to three runs."
The victory was given to junior Campbell Scholl (1-0), who pitched the fifth inning and worked out of a bases loaded jam. A save was notched by sophomore Eric Hepple for tossing the final 1 1/3 innings.
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Responding with Runs
- After LIU opened the game with two runs, the Knights came back with five hits and three runs on their own during the second frame.
- Singles by Sam Tolleson and Brooks Morgan started the rally before Kam Gellinger poked a hit through the left side to cut the deficit to 2-1.
- The Knights knotted the contest at two-all on a base knock by Brennan Bozeman into right field.
- In the eighth inning, UCF answered three runs by the Blackbirds with three more runs on a two-RBI single by Putnam and sac fly from Josh Moser, 12-7.
"All around offensively, we are doing pretty well. I think we were struggling a little bit in putting hits together. This weekend things really came together and we started swinging it better. My presence in the middle just helps keep everything rolling and the lineup going."
-LF Austin Griffin
Griffin's Granny
- The second grand slam of the season was registered by Austin Griffin in the fifth frame, which was a response to LIU taking a 4-3 advantage in the top of the frame.
- It was set up following a pair of walks and an error to load the bases. Griffin connected on a 2-2 pitch that landed over the fence in left.
- The Keller, Texas, native also blasted a homer with the bases loaded in the eighth inning vs. Bethune-Cookman (2/23).
- The round tripper was his team-leading fourth of the campaign. He has also driven in a team-best 21 runs.
"He is doing his job in the middle of the lineup and is placed there for a reason. Coach Klosty [Ryan Klosterman] has done a great job with him. His numbers in junior college were fantastic, but we needed some power out of him. He came through with some key extra base hits this weekend for us."
-HC Terry Rooney
All the Arms
- Junior Campbell Scholl registered the victory after working out of a bases loaded jam and limiting the Blackbirds' damage to two unearned runs in the fifth inning.
- The first save of the season for Eric Hepple was registered by registering the final four outs.
- Three innings were tossed by sophomore Andrew Deramo, who fanned four.
- Freshman Thaddeus Ward, sophomore Chris Williams, junior Trent Thompson and senior Harrison Hukari also made appearances for the Knights.
Noting the Blackbirds
- Tommy Jakubowski delivered three hits and three RBI, while two hits and two RBI were added by Kyle Ruth.
- A pair of base knocks were also tallied by Andrew Turner and Brian Lamboy.
- Starter Cory Hart (0-1) was tagged with the loss after going four-plus innings.
- Tommy Jakubowski delivered three hits and three RBI, while two hits and two RBI were added by Kyle Ruth.