ORLANDO, Fla. – After 345 days since the last home contest, the 2021 baseball season is finally here for the UCF baseball team. Head Coach Greg Lovelady is set to begin his fifth year at the helm as the Knights look to pick up where they left off in 2020.
LOVELADY AND A LOOK BACK
Head coach Greg Lovelady returns for his fifth season at the helm and currently sits at 126-68 overall with the Knights and 250-124 as a head coach. Lovelady's staff features returning assistants Ted Tom (4th season), along with pitching coach Nick Otte (3rd season), and new addition Chris Cates (1st Season).
The Black and Gold held an impressive 15-3 record a season ago before the COVID-19 pandemic brought an abrupt end to the 2020 campaign, and were ranked as high as No. 12 by four of the major six national baseball polls. It was on pace to be one of the most historic seasons in program history, but unfortunately the pandemic brought it to an unexpected end.
2021 SCHEDULE
The 56-game lineup is highlighted by 26 games at John Euliano Park, 16 of which are American Athletic Conference contests. The Knights first weekend of league play on home turf comes against South Florida (Apr. 1 - 3) in the second four-game tilt between the two teams. Other home weekends include Memphis (Apr. 30 - May 2), Wichita State (May 7 - 9) and Houston (May 20 - 22).
View the full 2021 UCF Baseball Schedule here.
56 Total Games
26 Home Games
16 Home Games in the AAC
9 games against the RPI Top-10
14 games against the RPI Top-25
22 games against the RPI Top-50
25 games against the RPI Top-100
KNIGHTS ROSTER
UCF's newest recruit class features six pitchers (Zack Bennett, Vince Bonanni, AJ Jones, Kenny Serwa, Ben Vespi, and Nick Vieira), three infielders (Michael Brooks, Alex Freeland, and John Montes) an outfielder (Colin Flynn), and a catcher/utility player (Matthew Menendez).
The Knights return 24 players; nine pitchers that recorded innings a season ago, including Preseason All-Conference selections Colton Gordon and Jack Sinclair, and 12 position players with starting experience.
PRESEASON HONORS
Colton Gordon and Jack Sinclair brought in the first accolades of the 2021 campaign as the pair of Knights were named to the American Athletic Conference Preseason All-Conference Team in late December. Gordon, a six-foot-four lefty from Bradenton, Fla. posted a 2-0 record with a 2.35 ERA over 23.0 innings of work, the most of any Knights pitcher. Jack Sinclair made eight appearances out of the bullpen in 2020, tied for the most for the Black and Gold, while racking up 20 strikeouts in just 13.1 innings of work. The junior maintained a 1.35 ERA, only allowing two runs in 2020.
Freshman Alex Freeland also pulled in some preseason honors as d1baseball.com named the Cape Coral, Fla. native American Athletic Conference Preseason Freshman of the Year. The Cape Coral, Fla. native was also tabbed No. 27 on the Top 500 Incoming Freshman by Perfect Game after concluding his high school career with a .323 batting average, .455 OBP, and drove in 63 RBI across 92 games.
PRESEASON RANKINGS ROUNDUP
After garnering national attention during the COVID-19 shortened 2020 campaign, the UCF baseball team has continued to pick up recognition throughout the 2021 preseason. The highest ranking for the Knights comes from Baseball America at No. 24, while Perfect Game ranked UCF at No. 25.
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) tabbed the Knights at No. 28 in their Top-30 while Collegiate Baseball Newspaper slotted the Black & Gold at No. 32. UCF is also receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches' Poll.
Fans can view the full rankings from each major poll below:
D1Baseball.com
Baseball America
Collegiate Baseball Newspaper
NCBWA
Perfect Game
USA Today
SEASON TICKETS
Click here to purchase season tickets.
John Euliano Park will be restricted to 25% capacity for home games this season and proper physical distancing and masks will be required.
ALL seating within John Euliano park will be general admission with seats being available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Season ticket members will receive one ticket for each home event. Due to the fluid nature of our schedule, fans will be able to exchange tickets from games they are unable to attend or from any postponed/canceled games to a different game during the season, online through their UCF account manager.
General Admission Seating: $99 ($4.50 per event)
SINGLE-GAME TICKETS
In addition to season tickets, a limited amount of single-game tickets will be made available for purchase for each home event.
General Admission Seating: $10
Youth (17 and under) General Admission Seating: $5
GET THE APP
Never miss any UCF Knights news from your favorite team by downloading the free UCF Knights app right to your iOS or Android phone! The app provides personalized information for men's and women's teams, scores, schedules, loyalty programs and even breaking news.
FOLLOW THE KNIGHTS
Follow UCF Baseball on social media on Facebook (/UCF.Baseball), Twitter (UCF_Baseball), and Instagram (UCF.Baseball).
