Softball Set to Host McNeese State at Home

ORLANDO – The No. 22 ranked UCF softball team will be back at the UCF Softball Complex over the weekend as the Knights will play host to McNeese State for a three game series.
 
The Knights play the Cowgirls in a double header on Friday, with game one at 4:00 p.m. followed by a 6:00 p.m. game two. The two sides will square off once more for a Saturday matinee at 1:00 p.m.
 
The Friday double header will be live streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will be available all weekend long.

TICKETING/COVID-19 PROTOCOLS
Capacity for The UCF Softball Complex this season is roughly twenty-five percent of full capacity.
 
A very limited number of single-game tickets will be made available 24-48 hours prior to each home game. Single game ticket inventory will come from unclaimed visiting team and player guest ticket allotments and will vary by game.
 
Fans interested in purchasing tickets are encouraged to check their UCF Account Manager page HERE leading up to each home game for ticket availability.
 
All tickets will be $10 general admission seats. There will be NO walk-up tickets available day of game as it is online purchase only.
 
Fans will be required to wear face coverings at all times, except while actively eating or drinking. Other safety measures in place for the 2021 season include:

• Hand sanitizer stations will be located throughout the concourse
• Bathrooms and other common touch points will be cleaned and sanitized regularly
• COVID-19 signage encouraging best practices will be located throughout the facility
• Certain seating will be blocked off to encourage physical distancing

For the latest information on ticketing for 2021 UCF Softball home events, contact the ticket office at (407) 823-1000, or follow us on social at UCF Softball on Facebook (/UCFSoftball), Twitter (@UCF_Softball) and Instagram (@UCF.Softball).

THE COWGIRLS
The Knights are 2-1 all-time against McNeese State, with their last win coming on Feb. 22, 2014 in a 5-2 victory.

The Cowgirls are currently 3-7 to start the 2021 season, including wins over Kansas and then No. 20 Arkansas. McNeese placed four players on the 2021 Southland Conference preseason softball teams, including senior shortstop Cori McCrary and sophomore outfielder Kaylee Lopez, who were named to the first team, and sophomores Alayis Seneca (outfield) and Saleen Flores (pitcher), who were named to the second team.

McNeese softball was also picked to finish second in the 2021 Southland Conference Poll released in early February.
 
KNIGHT BITES
A NEW ALL-TIME WINS LEADER
UCF Softball has a new all-time wins leader in Alea White. White secured career win No. 81 in Sunday's win over New Mexico State to pass Shelby Turnier as the winningest pitcher in program history.  On the mound, White (4-0) was lights out in her record-setting performance. She was perfect through four and threw a complete game, allowing no earned runs on just four hits while striking out eight. 

"I'm so proud of Alea for setting the record. She deserves it." said head coach Cindy Ball-Malone. "I couldn't think of a better person to lead our program, and it's an honor to be a part of it and have been there with her today. I love handing her the ball every game."

MOVING ON UP
The USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Coaches' Poll was released on Tuesday and the Knights checked in at No. 22. The Knights, who were predicted to finish first in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll in early January, are the sole AAC team to make an appearance in the top 25. The Knights were also ranked No. 17 in the JWOS Top 25 Poll, No. 22 in the D1 Softball poll and were receiving votes in the USA Softball/ESPN preseason rankings.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
The Knights had two players named American Athletic Conference Players of the Week in Jazmine Esparza and Alea White. White started twice in three games for the Knights over the weekend to help them sweep New Mexico State at home. The Pitcher of the Week honor marked White's 10th time earning the award in her career. She has won the award at least once in every year she played in the black and gold. Earning her first career conference Player of the Week award, Jazmine Esparza  slashed .667/.700/1.444 with two home runs and nine RBI on the weekend. The last time the Knights earned both Player and Pitcher of the Week honors in the same week was Feb. 10, 2020, when Alea White and Justene Molina each earned the award.

STRONG START
The Knights came out of the gates hot to start the season, posting a record 21 runs through their first two games against FGCU in their opening weekend, including a 13-0 thrashing over the Eagles in UCF's first game of the season. Week two was hardly different. UCF posted its highest margin of victory ever in Friday nights 18-1 win over New Mexico State. The Knights posted 37 combined runs over three games to sweep the Aggies and move to 6-1 on the year. Following Wednesday night's 6-5 loss to No. 20 Mizzou, the Knights are 6-2 on the year.

FOLLOW THE KNIGHTS
Stay tuned to UCF Softball on Facebook (/UCFSoftball), Twitter (@UCF_Softball) and Instagram (@UCF.Softball) for the latest on the UCF Softball team.

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. Download the app here.