ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnighs.com) – After 345 days since the Knights last contest, baseball is finally back at John Euliano Park. The UCF baseball team will open the 2021 season with a three-game series against FAU beginning at home on Friday, Feb. 19 with the first pitch set for 6 p.m. The Knights will hit the road to finish out the series in Boca Raton, Fla. with a 6 p.m. Saturday game and a 1 p.m. start on Sunday.
Game one of the three-game set with FAU will be streamed on ESPN+, while games two and three at Florida Atlantic will be on CUSA.TV. Fans can also tune in to Marc Daniels on Opening Knight at John Euliano Park on FM96.9/AM740 The Game.
THE WEEKEND ROTATION
Colton Gordon will get the start on Opening Knight for the second year in a row. He's been the first person to open two Opening Knights since Kyle Sweat in 2007 and 2009. The returner has started all four games he's appeared in and recorded a team-high of three quality starts. He topped the pitching staff in 2020 with 23 innings pitched and fanned a season-high 10 batters in 6.1 innings in his first UCF appearance.
Hunter Patteson is slated to get the start in game two of the series. This is his second year in a row throwing on opening weekend for UCF. He tossed 5.1 innings in his first collegiate start and recorded a career-high seven strikeouts.
GAME 1 – Friday, 6 PM | ESPN+ | 96.9FM/740AM The Game
Colton Gordon, LHP (3-0, 2.35 ERA) vs. Jacob Josey, RHP (3-1, 3.7 ERA)
GAME 2 – Saturday, 6 PM | CUSA.TV
Hunter Patteson, LHP (1-0, 4.91 ERA) vs. Javi Rivera, RHP (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
GAME 3 – Sunday, 1 PM | CUSA.TV
TBA vs. LHP Matt Sparling (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
NOTES
- Colton Gordon is the first Knight to pick up his second Opening Knight start since Kyle Sweat did so in 2009.
- The Knights have started strong on Opening Weekends with a 35-15 mark all-time on Opening Knight and an 89-33-1 mark in the opening series.
- Colton Gordon and Jack Sinclair were named to the American Conference Preseason All-Conference Team.
- Freshman, Alex Freeland, was named American Athletic Conference Preseason Freshman of the Year.
- Five Knights held batting averages above .300 at the conclusion of the 2020 season, paced by Nick Romano hitting .315 in 17 games played.
- Sitting in at second in the nation, center fielder Gephry Pena swiped 13 bases in 2020. As a team, UCF stole 31 bases, the most of any American Athletic Conference team.
- The 2020 Knights pitching staff was first in the AAC (and nationally ranked) in the following categories: ERA: 2.17 (ninth), WHIP: 1.06 (12th), Hits per 9 Inn.: 5.89 (eighth), and shutouts: 3 (12th).
- Serving as a reliever throughout 2020, Jack Sinclair tied for the most appearances on the staff with eight.
- Sinclair tossed 13.1 innings last season, picking up a team-leading four wins on the year – tied for second in the nation.
- Head Coach Greg Lovelady returns for his fifth season at UCF with a career record of 250-124.
- Friday will be the first game for the newest 12 Knights.
TICKETING, MASKING & CAPACITY
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.
Click here for 2021 UCF Baseball tickets.
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)
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
DON'T MISS OUT
The UCF baseball team is set for its fifth season under head coach Greg Lovelady and will welcome two teams from the 2019 NCAA Tournament to John Euliano Park in 2021. Featuring a 26-game home schedule, John Euliano Park is set to host some of the best collegiate baseball in the country.
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