TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF Baseball team fell to Florida State 6-1 Saturday, and was eliminated from postseason play at Dick Howser Stadium. Despite the 2017 campaign drawing to a close, a new foundation for the program has been laid under first-year head coach Greg Lovelady.
"Obviously it's tough, you never want to lose your last game," Lovelady said. "It's really an emotional day but I'm proud of the kids. We didn't do enough today. We struck out a ton of guys, Jason [Bahr] did an unbelievable job, but they were able to get some good barrels on balls."
The Knights fell behind early in the third inning, when back-to-back walks were followed by a three-run home run that gave the Seminoles the lead. The Black and Gold got on the board in the seventh on a clutch two-out single by second baseman Matthew Mika, but were unable to do any more damage offensively.
UCF reliever Jason Bahr struck out nine hitters in three innings, but Florida State ace Tyler Holton kept the Knights offense off balance all day. Holton threw a complete game and gave up just six hits and no walks, while sitting down 13 batters en route to the victory.
The Knights' appearance in the NCAA Regionals was the first since 2012, and came in a year when most preseason polls had the team finishing last in The American. UCF not only finished better than expected, but captured The American's regular-season crown with a dramatic win over rival South Florida in the final game of the season.
The Black and Gold also brought home several conference honors, including Lovelady as Coach of the Year, senior starter Robby Howell as Pitcher of the Year, and newcomer Rylan Thomas as Rookie Position Player of the Year. Five Knights were also named to the all-conference squad.
In the American Athletic Conference tournament, UCF advanced to the semifinals and once again eliminated South Florida along the way, before falling to a red-hot East Carolina squad.
The Knights finished 2017 with an overall record of 40-22, including a 15-9 conference mark while going 29-10 at home, an even .500 at 10-10 on the road and 1-2 in neutral site games. It was the first time the team has won 40 games since the previous trip to regionals in 2012.
Lovelady credits all of the team's success to the players, especially the seniors. He said their willingness to make difficult changes, and trust that those changes would yield results and allow them to accomplish their goals, was crucial in convincing the rest of the team to buy in as well.
"I thanked the seniors and told them how much I loved them," Lovelady told the media as he choked back tears in the postgame press conference. "I told them how grateful me and my family are that they took us with open arms, and did everything I asked. They set forth on a mission that nobody thought they could do, and didn't care. They just went out every day and sacrificed, believed in each other, and believed in the staff. They are the ones that deserve all the credit because when there is a new coach, the older guys determine everything."
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