TAMPA, Fla. – Riding the high of its season-long 10-game win streak, and victories in 17 of its last 18 games to end the regular season, the (RV) UCF softball team is set for its participation in the 2023 American Athletic Conference Tournament hosted by the South Florida Bulls.
The Knights (36-19, 15-3 AAC) clinched the tournament's second seed with a 15-3 showing in conference play, marking the third consecutive season UCF claimed 15 or more wins within The American, as well as the second straight year the Knights earned a top-two seed in the conference tournament.
UCF will be vying for its third American Athletic Conference tournament championship in program history, and the second in the last two seasons after the Knights toppled Houston and South Florida in last year's tournament action. The Knights' quest for their third AAC Tournament title will begin Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. against a seventh-seeded Memphis Tigers squad they swept on the road to conclude the regular season May 5-7.
The Knights grinded out a pair of narrow victories in the first two games of the three-game set last weekend, including a 3-2 nine-inning victory Friday night made possible by stingy work from the tandem of Sarah Willis and Grace Jewell in the circle, and a timely game-tying Jada Cody solo home run in the top of the seventh inning.
Overall, UCF outscored the Tigers 19-5 in the three matchups on the strength of its 10-0 run-rule victory in the regular season finale Sunday afternoon. The series sweep bolstered the Knights' all-time record against the Tigers to 37-16, though UCF dropped its lone matchup to Memphis in AAC tournament play history by a 3-0 final score in the 2014 tournament's first round.
Willis leads the charge for the Knights this weekend, recording among the most dominant individual seasons in The American. Her 0.79 ERA (62 IP, 7 ER) in conference play represented the best among any pitcher, and her 1.67 season ERA (121.2, 29 ER) marked the third-lowest in the AAC.
The right-hander leads the team with seven complete games, narrowly besting Jewell's six, and her regular season was highlighted by her April 28 perfect game against the Houston Cougars that marked the first seven-inning perfect game in program history and the third overall, as well as the first since 2003.
Jewell joined her teammate in producing a career season, setting career-best marks in ERA (2.17, also the fourth-best mark in The American), innings pitched (119.1), strikeouts (70) and batting average-against (.180).
Together, they lead a Knights pitching staff that has posted a 2.88 team ERA (364.1 IP, 150 ER) that ranks third-best in The American and 77th in the nation. Jewell's team-leading five solo shutouts and Willis' four also factor into the Knights' conference-leading 13 total shutout wins, a mark that also ranks 24th in Division I softball.
At the plate, UCF is paced by the likes of utility player/left fielder Kennedy Searcy, right fielder Chloe Evans, utility infielder Aubrey Evans and first baseman Shannon Doherty. Searcy represented one of the squad's most productive hitters in conference play, posting a team-best .439/.522/.474 (25-for-57) with 27 total bases, while Chloe Evans recorded a team-leading .352 overall average (58-for-165) with seven triples, a mark that ranks tied for first in The American and tied for third in the nation. Searcy is also riding a personal hot streak entering tournament play, bringing a career-long 11-game hit streak to Tampa.
She has set the tone for the squad since head coach Cindy Ball-Malone moved her to the leadoff spot March 29, as the team is 17-1 in its last 18 games with Searcy leading off, and owns a 19-1 overall record when the Jacksonville, Florida native starts in the one-spot.
Chloe and Aubrey Evans both enter the tournament with 15 doubles this season, one shy of tying the UCF single-season record, while Chloe's seven three-baggers are tied with Tiffany Lane for second-most in a single season in program history.
Aubrey's 15 doubles, meanwhile, highlight a breakout freshman season that saw her record a .317/.426/.500 (40-for-126) line, headlined by her first collegiate home run against the then-No. 2 Oklahoma State Cowgirls March 19. She also brings an active 19-game on-base streak into tournament play, while Chloe's active 15-game hit streak is currently tied with Breanne Javier's program record set in 2008.
Doherty has also enjoyed a revitalized second half of the season. The junior is one home run shy of becoming the fourth Knight in program history with 30 in her career, and since April 1 has hit .386/.517/.795 (17-for-44) with a team-high five home runs, three doubles, 14 RBI and 35 total bases.
Fresh off her program record-breaking 75 RBI season in 2022, Jada Cody is still making Knights history in 2023 as well, needing just three hits to become the 11th in program history to reach the 200-hit milestone.
UP NEXT
The No. 2 Knights open 2023 AAC Tournament play Thursday afternoon against No. 7 Memphis at 12:30 p.m., as the scheduled start time was pushed up to accomodate for anticipated inclement weather, and will play for a spot in the tournament semifinals against the winner of No. 3 South Florida and No. 6 ECU Friday afternoon at 2:30 p.m.
