ORLANDO – The UCF softball team captured its third conference championship with a commanding 16-2 record in The American a season ago, and the program had a formidable offense that complemented its dominant pitching staff to thank. Led by both returning and new faces in the outfield, the Knights are looking forward to replicating and surpassing the success in 2023 the team enjoyed en route to the first Super Regional berth in program history in 2022.
Making up the contingent of returners from the '22 campaign are sophomores Savannah Adams and Averi Wong, juniors Johneisha Rowe, Kaite Burge and Kennedy Searcy, and senior Allyse Volpe.
The group of six helped lead a potent Knights offense that ranked within the top three in The American in a myriad of statistical categories, including walks (1st), batting average (2nd), doubles (2nd), on-base percentage (2nd), runs per game (2nd) and slugging percentage (2nd). Joining them will be a trio of newcomers, including a pair of transfers, juniors Chloe Evans and Sarah Willis, and one freshman, Olivia Elliott.
Volpe, entering her fifth season, brings the most collegiate experience of any of the Knights' 25 rostered players this season. The Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, native returns for her third season donning the Black and Gold after spending her first two seasons with the Bucknell Bison in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
She is a career .351 hitter in 148 games and was a steady offensive presence when called upon during the '22 slate, slashing .329/.391/.380 with four doubles in 36 games. One of the more sure-handed defensive players on head coach Cindy Ball-Malone's roster, Volpe has also committed just one error in her last three seasons roving the outfield spanning 104 games.
Rowe and Searcy were mainstays in the UCF lineup throughout the '22 season, appearing in 62 and 63 games, respectively. Both continued to build upon strong starts to their collegiate careers with impressive campaigns, with Searcy recording a .311/.435/.467 slashline, 31 RBI, 13 extra-base hits and 78 total bases.
Searcy, a utility player who figures to see more time in both the infield and outfield during the '23 season, familiarized herself with five starts in the outfield a year ago after also making 35 starts at third base. Stolen base attempts were not as big a part of her game during her sophomore season following her 17-for-19 display in the category as a freshman, but she was still successful in six of her eight tries.
Rowe enters 2023 after leading the Knights in stolen bases and ranking third in the American Athletic Conference with 23 in 27 attempts in her first season in the Black and Gold. On the heels of two strong seasons with FGCU, the Avon Park, Florida, native's skills carried over to The American, where she hit .297/.388/.331 with five extra-base hits and a season-high 58 total bases in 62 games.
Each of Rowe's season-high 61 starts came in center field, where her unshakeable defensive efforts proved valuable for the Knights. She committed just three errors and recorded a season-high-tying six outfield assists to help push her career fielding percentage up to .972.
Evans joins the program after playing for the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the first two seasons of her collegiate career. She produced a robust .318/.422/.611 slashline, including 23 extra-base hits (11 doubles, one triple and 11 homers), 46 RBI and 96 total bases. For her efforts, the Seymour, Wisconsin, native was named to the NFCA Great Lakes All-Region Third Team and All-Big Ten Second Team.
Evans also played against the Knights in 2022, going 1-for-2 with a walk on Feb. 11, an experience Ball-Malone stresses played a key role in Evans' eventual decision to join UCF.
Willis is a transfer from the Washington Huskies, a program where she served as a two-way player in the circle and in the outfield. A career .245 hitter with 10 extra-base hits as well as a 4.23 ERA, her offensive output took a step forward in '22.
Her on-base percentage climbed from .268 to .333 and her slugging percentage improved to .431 in her first multi-home run season. She also played a spotless outfield in 14 total fielding chances and has committed just one error in her first two seasons.
Elliott joins the program after recording eye-popping high school figures, including a .735 average and a 1.265 slugging percentage during her senior season, clubbing five homers and tallying 35 stolen bases. She was awarded with Player of the Year, All-Star and All-American honors following her final high school season.
Adams made a trio of starts in the outfield during her rookie campaign, a season that saw her named to the American Athletic Conference All-Tournament team after slugging a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning against Houston in the tournament semifinals that lifted the Knights to a 4-2 win.
Burge, like Searcy, received time in both the infield and outfield, earning four starts in left field, one in center field, one at third base, one at second base and one at designated player. In addition to hitting .219 with four RBI and two extra-base hits for the Knights, she also played for the U22 Great Britain National Team last summer, helping lead the squad to a silver medal at the European Championship.
Wong last season appeared in eight games off the bench during her freshman season, scoring a trio of runs while collecting her first collegiate RBI and stolen base.
OPENING WEEKEND
The Knights open their season against the Georgia Bulldogs at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9, marking the second straight season that UCF has drawn an Opening Knight matchup with Georgia. The season-opener is the first of four games the Knights will play during the Black & Gold Classic at the UCF Softball Complex, followed by a pair of Friday matchups against UMass and Boise State Feb. 10 and a Saturday evening tilt against Ohio State Feb. 11.
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