MEMPHIS, Tenn. (UCFKnights.com) – UCF freshman Alea White tossed her second shutout in the circle to help the Knights even their series at Memphis with a 2-0 victory on Saturday afternoon. The rubber match between the two squads is set for 1 p.m. ET Sunday.
"Alea put the team on her back today," head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie said. "She was really excited about having the opportunity to prove herself after yesterday. She had her stuff and was very confident in doing what she had to do."
The Land O'Lakes, Fla., native went the distance to move to 13-11 on the season and notched three strikeouts, while scattering nine hits. It was her second shutout of the season with the first, clinching the series at East Carolina (4/2).
After the Tigers threatened by loading the bases in the bottom of the seventh with no outs, White caught a soft liner in the cirlce and quickly threw to third base, doubling off the runner to put two away. The next batter hit a fly ball that was tracked down by freshman right fielder Kyra Klarkowski to secure the victory.
The Knights struck first by taking advantage of three Memphis mistakes to push across one run in the first inning. UCF (20-18, 4-4 The American) put pressure on the Tigers' (23-17, 4-4 The American) defense with senior left fielder Linnea Goodman and junior centerfielder Megan Greenwell reaching to start the rally. A ball off the bat of junior Courtney Rotton was dropped by the right fielder, allowing for a run to cross the plate.
With UCF holding 1-0 lead in the second inning, Memphis had two runners in scoring position and one out. A fly ball was caught by centerfielder Greenwell, who threw a dart to the plate and sophomore catcher Cassady Brewer applied the tag to complete the first of the Knights' two double plays.
A one-out single past the bag at third base by junior third baseman Courtney Rotton started a rally for the Knights in the third inning. After freshman first baseman Jazmine Esparza split the left-center gap, classmate Klarkowski singled up the middle to increase the UCF lead, 2-0.
UCF recorded six hits and had a number of opportunities to extend its lead but left 10 runners on base, including nine in scoring position.
"We are seeing that our offense is having good, quality at bats," Coach Gillispie said. "Coach [Corrie] Hill talks all the time about relaxing and letting the game come to you. We are working on being more relaxed with runners on base and need to start looking at the situation as an opportunity, instead of pressure."
Next Up
The Knights conclude their three-game set at Memphis on Sunday with a 1 p.m. ET start. UCF returns home on April 13 for a nationally televised contest against South Florida at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.
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