ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - On a night dedicated to one of its fallen brethren, the UCF baseball team opened its weekend series against No. 30 Wichita State at John Euliano Park with a 9-5 win. More importantly, the Knights celebrated Joe Skinner Knight by donating more than $20,000 to the SkinnerStrong Foundation to fight pediatric cancer.
"We didn't play very well," head coach Greg Lovelady said. "It was a sloppy game with a lot of walks. We did a good job in those middle innings of not swinging ourselves out of at-bats. Ray and Osik got some big hits with the bases loaded. Max got the huge hit when they tried to rally late. When you play a great team like that, you have to find ways to win. Great night with a great win makes it even better."
The Knights rebounded from a first-inning 2-0 deficit with back-to-back four-run innings in the third and fourth. Logan Heiser led off the third, before Ray Alejo and Rylan Thomas drew consecutive walks. Tyler Osik flipped the momentum with one swing of the bat with a three-RBI double down the left field line. The junior later came home on a passed ball.
One inning later, Brandon Hernandez took a pitch off his foot with one out. Heiser and Dallas Beaver loaded the bases with a pair of walks. Alejo chopped a 1-2 offering beyond the outstretched glove of the third baseman to clear the bases for his team-leading third triple of the year. Thomas brought in the redshirt sophomore on the next at-bat with an RBI sacrifice fly to right to extend the lead to 8-2.
Starting pitcher Cre Finfrock shook off a two-run home run by the Shockers in the first inning and settled in for 5 1/3 innings of action. The redshirt junior rolled a pair of 1-2-3 innings in the third and fifth, and worked around a runner in scoring position in the fourth. Finfrock struck out five on the night to improve to 5-0.
KEY STATS
UCF (28-14, 8-8) - 9, Wichita State (27-13, 4-9) - 5
Winning pitcher: Cre Finfrock (5-0)
Losing pitcher: Codi Heuer (5-4)
Save: Thad Ward (2)
Top performers: Cre Finfrock (5.1 IP, 5 K, 4 H, 2 ER), Thad Ward (2.1 IP, 4 K, 3 H, 1 ER), Ray Alejo (1-4, 3 RBI, 2 R, 1 3B, 1 BB), Tyler Osik (1-3, 3 RBI, 1 R, 1 2B)
FOR JOE
* While the win moved the Knights back to .500 in American Athletic Conference action, the evening had an even more significant meaning. UCF honored Joe Skinner, a UCF Baseball signee who passed away from an acute form of leukemia in 2016.
* The Black and Gold presented a check to the SkinnerStrong Foundation for $24,223, which capped a month-long fundraising drive.
* In two years of hosting Joe Skinner Knight, UCF has raised more than $57,000 for the foundation and Florida Hospital to help in the fight against pediatric cancer.
"The most important thing tonight was just raising money," Lovelady added. "Not only did we want to honor Joe, but we wanted to help out the foundation. Hopefully, the money going back into the local community will save a life or help people that are in need. That was the most important thing tonight. I'm proud to be a part of this and for how our guys came together to raise money for such a good cause. To see the Skinner family here tonight, I know how difficult it must be to not see their son playing. We love them. We love Joe. We miss him."
WALK THIS WAY
* The Knights scored their first eight runs on just a pair of hits.
* UCF drew nine walks on the night, one shy of its season high.
* Heiser and Hernandez reached on hit by pitches to take the free pass total to 11.
* Seven of UCF's nine runs reached on a walk or hit by pitch.
THAD FOR THE SAVE
* Thad Ward notched his second save of the year.
* The junior came in with the bases loaded in the seventh.
* The Shockers pulled a run back in the eighth, but retired the final four batters on 10 pitches.
* Ward finished with four strikeouts to take his team-leading total to 66.
NOTABLES
* Friday was the first ever meeting between the Knights and the Shockers.
* With his sac fly, Rylan Thomas is now one RBI away from the career century club.
* The Knights are now 9-1 when playing on Friday this season.
* Max Wood drove in an RBI with a single to left in the seventh.
* Osik and Alejo posted their 10th and sixth multi-RBI games this season, respectively.
* UCF is now 4-9 this year when being outhit by an opponent. Wichita State bested the Black and Gold 8-5 in that category.
* The Knights played error-free for the 18th time this season. They are now 14-4 when not committing an error.
* UCF improved to 6-4 against ranked opponents this season.
* Thomas extended his on-base streak to 50 games.
UP NEXT
UCF and Wichita State will be back at on Saturday night at John Euliano Park for a 6:30 p.m. first pitch. The Knights will send Chris Williams to the mound against Tyler Davis for the Shockers.
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