ORLANDO – In a two-game set that began at 6 p.m. Thursday and concluded at 11:37 p.m. Friday evening, the UCF baseball team and Wichita State battled each other and the weather. With the first game suspended after one out and resumed Friday, the two teams played a makeshift doubleheader, splitting the two games.
The Knights walked off the series opener for a 16-15 victory to open the series and the Shockers answered with a ninth-inning rally of their own in game two for a final score of 12-7.
The Knights move to 31-24 on the season and 11-12 in American Athletic Conference play and the Shockers move to 30-22 and 13-9.
Across the two games, both Tom Josten and Andrew Sundean tallied 5 RBI apiece and four Knights combined for five home runs as Sundean opened the scoring in each game with a homer and Andrew Brait hammered the second of his career for three runs.
Game One
The Knights walked off a four-hour, high-scoring contest to open the series on a high note against the Shockers.
The Knights played one out on Thursday night as Ruddy Gomez struck out the leadoff hitter before the game was suspended due to lightning in the area.
The game resumed in the top of the first at 11 a.m. Friday morning, as Jacob Marlowe entered the game in relief with an 0-2 count. He got off to a strong start, retiring four Shockers in order after giving up a leadoff hit and throwing a perfect second inning. In his 4.1 innings, Marlowe struck out four and allowed three runs.
Through five innings, the Knights took a convincing 10-3 lead over Wichita State. Sundean's first home run of the day scored two runs in the fourth to take the lead for the Knights following a run by the Shockers in the top of the inning. John Rhys Plumlee doubled to left field, Drew Faurot drew a four-pitch walk, and Matt Cedarburg wore a pitch to load the bases. Josten scored two on a single up the middle and Brait followed with a no-doubter to left field that scored three for a huge seven-run inning by the Knights.
Lex Boedicker smashed his 16th homer of the season to tie for 6th in single-season home runs in UCF history.
The Shockers tied the game 15-15 on two big innings late in the game, scoring 12 in the final three frames.
Matt Cedarburg was due up the bottom of the ninth, with two runners on as Boedicker singled and Plumlee walked. Putting the ball in play on the first pitch, Cedarburg drew an error from the Shockers' first baseman which allowed Boedicker to score form second.
The Knights took game one in walk-off fashion, scoring 16 runs on 14 hits.
Game Two
After a substantial weather delay, the Knights took the field for the second game of the day at 8 p.m.
The Knights got on the board early, with a first-inning shot into the visitors bullpen from Sundean to notch three RBI, scoring Brait, who led off the inning with a first-pitch single to the third baseman, and McCabe, who walked.
Adding two more in the following inning on another home run, this time on a towering opposite-field shot from Tom Josten, the Knights took a 5-0 lead in the second that they would hold through four.
Cameron Leiter threw 1.1 innings to open the contest and Dom Stagliano entered in relief and held the Shockers to one run through the fifth inning.
Julian Balzer had a career performance out of the bullpen, setting career highs in both innings pitched with 2.2 and strikeouts with six. He retired the side in order in the seventh, recording the final two outs as Sundean hosed runners trying to steal second, and threw a perfect frame in the eighth.
The Knights concluded their scoring in the seventh inning as McCabe belted his first double of the series down the right field line to plate Josten and Nick Romano batted in McCabe on a groundout to the third baseman.
In a late rally, the Shockers produced two big innings taking a lead in the sixth inning and adding six runs in the top of the ninth inning to take back the final lead.
The Knights and Shockers close the series with a rubber match Saturday with first pitch set for 6 p.m. UCF will also honor five seniors prior to the game, recognizing their accomplishments and contributions to the program.
- Game 1
- Game 2