ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF baseball team will open a four-game homestand on Wednesday night at John Euliano Park with a midweek contest against North Florida. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m. on UCFKnights.TV.
The Knights are looking to bounce back from a 1-3 week with all four games against teams ranked as high as 14th in one of the national polls. The Knights used a six-run fifth inning last Tuesday at Florida State to win 9-7, aided by a trio of strikeouts from Kyle Kemp with the bases loaded. Over the weekend at ECU, the Black and Gold scored early in all three games but could not pick up a win on the first weekend of American Athletic Conference play.
Ray Alejo and Tyler Osik have been a potent 1-2 punch at the top of the lineup. The duo has hit a combined .381 with 35 combined RBI. The outfield pairing has done its damage with early with a clip of .458, 20 runs scored and 15 RBI in the opening two innings of game. Alejo and Osik have also been threats on the base paths with 10 and seven steals, respectively.
PROMOTIONS
• The second Dollar Dog Knight of the year will be Wednesday.
• UCF will kickstart its month-long fundraising program for the Skinner Strong Foundation. For more information, click here.
ON THE MOUND
Jordan Spicer will get the ball for the Knights for his fifth start of the year. The righty’s last two starts have come during the midweek. Spicer is 1-0 on the year through five appearances with 12 strikeouts over 14 2/3 innings of work.
SCOUTING NORTH FLORIDA
• North Florida is 16-10 on the season with a 2-1 mark in the ASun.
• The Ospreys have a series win over Missouri to start the year and knocked off No. 3 Florida in Gainesville in a midweek contest.
• Jay Prather has one of the top bats in the nation with a .404 clip at the dish on 42 hits, which ranks fifth nationally.
• North Florida is hitting .281 on the year with 248 base knocks, the 19th-best mark in the nation.
UCF vs. North Florida - Wednesday, March 27, 6 PM | UCFKnights.TV | Live Stats
Jordan Spicer (1-0, 7.98 ERA) vs. TBA
NOTES
• North Florida leads the all-time series 12-9.
• UCF has 12 base hits from bunts this season, led by five from Chandler Robertson.
• Ray Alejo leads The American and ranks ninth nationally with 40 hits this season.
• Matthew Mika is tied for eighth in program history with 68 stolen bases, the most since Tyson Auer’s 80 from 2005-08.
• The Knights fell to second in The American and 24th nationally with 10 strikeouts per nine innings.
• UCF has 45 stolen bases on the year to lead the conference.
• Kyle Kemp has been a strikeout machine out of the bullpen with a strikeout per nine inning mark of 15.35.
• Alejo and Dallas Beaver continue to hold the team lead with five home runs apiece.
• UCF is 13-6 at John Euliano Park this season, posting a team batting average of .281 with 101 RBI.
• Jack Sinclair has been a workhorse out of the bullpen with 20 innings thrown this season and a 3-2 record.
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