ORLANDO – The No. 24 UCF softball team returns home after a successful California road trip to play four games, starting with Ohio State on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
As of Tuesday morning, the Knights have returned to the USA Today/NFCA Top 25, checking in at No. 24 this morning. UCF has been in the polls three separate times this season, with the last occurrence coming in week three of the season. Ohio State is listed as receiving votes in the latest poll.
The Knights went 7-0 in California, stretching their win streak to 11 games. Once again, Jada Cody shined by going 6 for 15, with three homers and eight RBI in her last five games. In the circle, Gianna Mancha was dominant as well. She pitched a combined 16 and two-thirds innings at the Louisville Slugger Invitational while tallying 20 strikeouts and earning three wins and a save. Many Knights moved up in UCF's all-time record books as well including Denali Schappacher, Cody and Mancha.
Cody now has 40 RBI on the season, after having season-high games in home runs, RBIs and runs scored during the Louisville Slugger Invitational. Cody leads the nation in RBI, edging Washington's Baylee Klingler by one for the top spot.
The Knights lead the nation in walks by a heavy margin, accumulating 134 free passes through 29 games. The next closest team in the country is LSU, who has drawn 107 walks through 26 games. UCF is close to cracking the top 10 in on base percentage, recording a .430 clip which places them 11th in the country.
Ohio State comes into play with an 13-3 record and five game winning streak. The Buckeyes are ranked 16th in the country with a team ERA of 1.67. They are also ranked 51st with a 2.98 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Offensively the Big 10 program has a cumulative total of nine home runs as a squad and are ranked 94th in team batting average with a .284 mark.
Each member of the Buckeye pitching staff enters the contest with sub-2.00 ERAs. They have combined for 134 strikeouts with Lexie Handley earning 73 of those. Meggie Otte leads the team in RBIs with 18 and Jaycee Ruberti is the leader in hits.
The Knights have met the Buckeyes seven times in their history, winning five of the seven meetings. UCF was victorious in the last outing against Ohio State, winning 3-2 in Orlando on Feb. 9, 2019.
Following Tuesday's contest, the Black and Gold will host a three-game series against Furman, starting with a double header on Saturday followed by a single game on Sunday.
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