#20 UCF Set to Host ECU

ORLANDO – The No. 20 UCF softball team is set to host ECU in a three-game series starting on Thursday at 6 p.m. at the UCF Softball Complex. The Knights have won five straight contests and are 6-0 to start American Athletic Conference play.

The Knights enter the weekend with a 6-0 record in American Athletic Conference play, earning sweeps at South Florida and at home over Memphis so far. The Knights earned 4-0, 6-0 and 8-0 wins against the Tigers, blanking the Tigers on the weekend. for their first series shutout since playing ECU in 2015. That was the only other occurrence in conference play for the Black and Gold, who also totally shutout FAU when they faced them in a three-game set in 2021.

As a team, UCF is hitting .311 in conference play this season while holding South Florida and Memphis to a combined .129 batting average. Johneisha Rowe and Kennedy Searcy have been phenomenal at the top of the lineup in league play, batting .500 and .563 at the top two spots in the order. Kama Woodall and Ashleigh Griffin are fresh off make The American's weekly honor roll for their performances last week. Woodall tossed 12 shutout innings, earning two victories, including one in relief against No. 5 Virginia Tech in an 11-inning thriller. Griffin hit .417 last week with five hits, four of them for extra bases, smashing three doubles and a homer while collecting 11 RBI.

For the first time this season, UCF is in the top 20 of every poll recognized by the NCAA. They had previously been in the top 20 of three, but the new ranking of No. 20 in the NFCA Top 25 finally got them over the threshold in every poll. The Black and Gold are also 20th in USA Softball's rankings while checking in at No. 18 in D1Softball and Softball America. The Knights have been up and down in the RPI over the past two weeks, climbing as high as No. 10 and currently sitting at No. 14.

UCF has won 11 straight contests against ECU and lead the all-time series 28-19. It will be the first time since 2018 that the Pirates visit Orlando. UCF hasn't lost to ECU since 2017, which came in The American tournament after winning the series in the regular season that year. The Knights beat the Pirates handily in the 2021 regular season, sweeping the four-game series with a combined score of 25-8 before beating them in the conference tournament 4-3.

The Pirates enter the weekend with a 19-21 record and have won just one game in their last ten contests. They're floating around the top 100 mark nationally in the major offensive categories, ranked 105th in batting average (.279), 108th in on base percentage (.362), 137th in slugging percentage (.401) and 93rd in runs per game, averaging an even five per contest. Opponents hit .277 against ECU while their pitching staff has a team ERA of 4.10, 187th in the nation.

Madisyn Davis leads the Pirates in the circle, tallying 54 strikeouts and seven wins over 71 innings pitched, all team highs. On the offensive side, Jocelyn Alonso leads the team in batting average with a .348 clip. Chandley Garner leads the team in home runs with four while Sydney Yoder has collected 30 RBI.

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