ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The War on I-4 Rivalry Series resumes on Thursday with the first game between UCF and USF broadcasting on ESPNU at 6 p.m. Admission to the series opener at the UCF Softball Complex is free.
Thursday – 6 p.m. (ESPNU)
- Free admission
- Student Knight
- First 70 students receive an April Bobblehead (Earth Day)
- Student raffle for two Amazon Echos and a Roku
- Town and Gown – UCF Women's Group
Friday – 5:30 p.m. (UCFKnights.TV)
- Dollar Dogs
Saturday – 1 p.m. (UCFKnights.TV)
- Easter egg hunt postgame
- Easter Bunny available for postgame photos
UCF
The Knights (21-18, 5-4 The American) became a viral hit on social media after turning an 8-2-5 triple a play to clinch their series at Memphis in the bottom of the seventh. The play showed up at No. 8 on Sunday's SportsCenter Top 10 and has been shared by a number of media outlets on Twitter and Facebook.
Senior Linnea Goodman also became the UCF single-game hit queen in that contest, going 5-for-5 with three RBI and a double. The Long Beach, Calif., native had tied the previous mark twice in her career. The four-hit feat had been accomplished 17 times in program history.
Goodman was tabbed as The American Player of the Week after going 9-for-14, notching a hit in all four games and recording a 5-for-5 and 2-for-2 performance.
Leading the team through three conference series is freshman Kyra Klarkowski, who has posted a .542 batting average and eight RBI. She is following in the footsteps of sophomore Cassady Brewer, the 2016 American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year after posting a .455 avg. and 12 RBI last year.
In the circle, freshman Alea White notched her 14th victory of the season in her last outing. The Land O'Lakes, Fla., native has tossed two shutouts and notched 70 strikeouts over 143.1 innings of work.
The Knights also rely upon the contributions of senior Manami Calixto and freshmen Kamryn Toney (4-3) and Damara Begin (1-1).
USF
The Bulls hold a 24-19 overall mark and are set to play at Jacksonville this afternoon at 3 p.m. USF is 4-4 in conference play with a series sweep against East Carolina and a two-game split at UConn.
The offense is paced by Astin Donovan with a .347 batting average, while hitting at a .432 clip over 26 games is Kristen Wyckoff. The top run producers are Bethaney Keen and Sam Worrell with 23 and 22 RBI, respectively. Both Kassandra Moeller and Worrell have blasted six home runs.
The USF pitching staff has relied upon four hurlers – Kalen McGill (10-5), Hannah Parker (7-4), Cheyenne Eggens (5-6) and Susan Wysocki (2-4). A team-best ERA has been posted by Eggens at 2.24. Parker has notched 68 strikeouts in 86.2 innings, while McGill has fanned 59 over 84.1 frames.
War on I-4 Rivalry Series
UCF currently leads the War on I-4 Rivalry Series, 36-18. Heading into basketball season, both teams were tied, 15-15, before UCF captured 21-straight points with wins in men's and women's basketball, men's tennis and women's track and field.
On the softball diamond, USF holds a 12-9 mark in the all-time series, but the Knights have a 7-3 edge, winning each series 2-1, since both programs joined The American in 2014. UCF defeated USF, 3-1, in the semifinals on its way to the 2015 American Athletic Conference Championship, which was held in Orlando.
Next Up
UCF hits the road for a matchup with No. 3 Florida on April 19 in Gainesville. First pitch on SEC Network+ is set for 6:05 p.m.
Season tickets for the 2017 campaign start at $50 for adults and $25 for youth (ages 2-17). For more information about season and individual game tickets, click here.
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