ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - The No. 22 UCF baseball team picked up its fifth win of the year against a ranked opponent on Tuesday night with a 4-1 victory over No. 16 Stetson at John Euliano Park. The Knights avenged a 1-0 defeat to the Hatters earlier in the year with an 11-strikeout performance from the pitching staff.
"We played really well," head coach Greg Lovelady said. "They did a good job of keeping us down at their place earlier in the season. It was good to come out and win this game and find a way to score runs against one of the best statistical pitchers in the country. We had a rough first inning, but we bounced right back. We had some big hits from Bernardo, including that huge home run. Ray had a huge two-out single to pad the lead. Then, the pitching staff did a great job. All those guys in the bullpen are great. Thad was huge with that bases-loaded strikeout. I'm really proud of the guys today. Good start to the week. Now, we need to carry it over into the weekend."
Pitching by committee, Lovelady gave Cre Finfrock the ball for his first start in nearly two years. The righty shook off a first-inning home run by Stetson to settle in for three innings of work with a pair of strikeouts. Finfrock earned his second win of the year. Jordan Spicer was flawless over the next three frames with three strikeouts. Thad Ward worked around two hits and two walks to fan six over his two innings, before Bryce Tucker and Eric Hepple closed out the game in the ninth.
The Knights faced the difficult task of going up against Stetson starter Joey Gonzalez, who was one of only seven pitchers in the nation with a sub-1.0 ERA entering the game on Tuesday. With the Black and Gold trailing 1-0 in the second, Griffin Bernardo changed the trajectory of the game with one swing of the bat. The rookie pelted a three-run home run over the wall in left to give the Knights the lead. The homer was just the fourth allowed by Stetson this season. Ray Alejo added to the lead in the fourth with a two-out RBI single that scored Bernardo.
KEY STATS
No. 22 UCF (21-9) - 4, No. 16 Stetson (23-6) - 1
Winning pitcher: Cre Finfrock (2-0)
Losing pitcher: Joe Gonzalez (6-2)
Save: Bryce Tucker (3)
Top performers: Jordan Spicer (3.0 IP, 3 K), Thad Ward (2.0 IP, 6 K, 2 BB, 2 H), Griffin Bernardo (2-3, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R), Ray Alejo (2-4, 1 RBI)
THUNDEROUS THAD
* Ward made his fifth appearance out of the bullpen on the season.
* The junior added to his team-leading strikeout tally. He now had 48 this year, a new career best.
* Ward worked himself out of a jam that could have to let Stetson back in the game. With the bases loaded, the righty ended the threat and his night with a strikeout.
NOTABLES
* The Knights extended their series lead over Stetson to 72-48.
* UCF picked up its second win of the year when being outhit. Stetson bested the Black and Gold 7-6.
* Rylan Thomas reached safely on a single in the fifth to take his on-base streak to 38 games.
* Matthew Mika stole his team-leading 18th base of the year.
* The Knights are 26-1 when allowing one or no runs in the Greg Lovelady era.
* Bernardo's home run was the third of his career.
UP NEXT
UCF will venture to frigid Connecticut for a three-game set this weekend against the Huskies.
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