LAWRENCE, Kan. – UCF baseball hits the road this weekend for a three-game Big 12 Conference series at Kansas.
The league series will run Friday to Sunday, March 22-24, at KU’s Hoglund Ballpark in Lawrence, Kansas. Friday’s opener is set for 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT, while Saturday’s contest will follow that afternoon at 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT. The two teams will then close the weekend series on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT. All three games will be streamed live on ESPN+ and Friday and Sunday’s games will also be on the radio on 96.9 The Game. Live Stats can be followed for each contest by visiting ucf.statbroadcast.com.
“If we play our style of baseball—where we pitch and defend at a high level, and get creative on offense—we can play with anybody in the country, anywhere,” head UCF coach Rich Wallace said. “I want to see us take what we do here and take it up there. I’m looking forward to the weekend.”
The Knights will enter the series with a 13-5 overall record and 2-4 Big 12 Conference mark after taking two of three from Oklahoma State at home last weekend for their first Big 12 series victory. Following the OSU series, the Black and Gold then moved to a perfect 5-0 in midweek games by defeating Florida Atlantic, 3-2, thanks to a go-ahead eighth-inning home run from Andrew Sundean. UCF is currently receiving votes for both the ESPN/USA Today Coaches and NCBWA polls and ranked sixth in the most recent RPI.
In Tuesday’s win over FAU, Sundean went 3-for-3 and drove in all three runs while the Black and Gold pitching staff limited the Owls to just two hits in the contest.
With Florida Atlantic holding to a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning, Sundean delivered a two-out two-run single to drive home both Matt Prevesk and Lex Boedicker to give the Knights a 2-1 advantage. Despite not allowing a hit in the inning, the Owls managed to manufacture a run to tie the game at 2-2 in the top of the sixth.
With the UCF bullpen putting up zeros from there, Sundean blasted out a leadoff solo home run down the leftfield line in the bottom of the eighth to put the Knights up for good. Black and Gold closer Chase Centala then retired the Owls in order in the ninth to secure the victory.
Wiley Hartley started for UCF for the second straight midweek game and struck out five while surrendering just one run on two hits over 2.2 innings. Southpaw Dominic Castellano followed with 3.0 strong innings in which he gave up just one run on no hits while striking out three. The late inning duo of Kyle Kramer and Centala then combined to not allow a hit or a run off of them over the final 3.1 innings while striking out two to help the Black and Gold to the victory.
Behind Sundean’s 3-for-3 performance with the three RBIs and a run scored, Boedicker reached base three times and scored a run while Prevesk and Mikey Kluska each went 1-for-3. With the round tripper on Tuesday, Sundean has now homered in two of UCF’s last three ballgames.
In the OSU series last weekend, Matt Cedarburg led the Black and Gold by batting .429 while Prevesk followed by hitting .385 with three RBIs and three runs scored. Jack Zyska and Andrew Williamson each homered twice against Oklahoma State.
On the season, Prevesk leads the Black and Gold with a .370 batting average. He also has six extra-base hits, 15 runs scored and 15 RBIs. Zyska is next with a .328 average, four home runs, 13 RBIs, and leads the team in runs scored (17) and walks (14). Sundean follows with a .319 average, four homers, 16 runs scored and leads the team in doubles (6) and RBIs (20). Right-hander Ben Vespi is UCF’s top starting pitcher as he holds a 2-0 record, 3.20 ERA, and has struck out 20 over 25.1 innings. Kramer and Centala lead the Knights from the pen as they hold a combined 5-0 record, 3.34 ERA and five saves.
About Kansas
The Jayhawks will enter the weekend with an 11-8 overall record and a 3-3 start to Big 12 play. KU has split its last four games and opened league play by taking two of three from No. 3 TCU at home before dropping two of three to Cincinnati on the road. Kansas was picked to finish eighth in the Big 12 this season after going 25-32 overall and taking eighth a season ago in conference play with an 8-16 clip. The Jayhawks last made a postseason appearance in 2014 and have made five all-time NCAA Regional appearances.
John Nett fronts the KU offense with a .338 batting average and seven doubles, while preseason all-conference honoree Kodey Shojinaga is next with a .333 average, 10 extra-base hits and a team-best 17 RBIs. Jake English follows with a .328 average and team-best six homers and 21 runs scored. Dominic Voegele is the club’s top starting pitcher with a 2-1 win-loss record and 2.08 ERA, while Reese Dutton follows with a 4-1 clip, 2.57 ERA and team-leading tallies of 29 strikeouts and 28.0 innings pitched.
Kansas is coached by Dan Fitzgerald who is in his second season leading the way in Lawrence.
All-Time Series History
Friday’s opener will mark the third all-time meeting between the Knights and Jayhawks and the first since 1998. The Knights will enter holding to a 2-0 advantage after recording neutral-site wins in both 1998 and 1993. This weekend will mark the first meeting in Lawrence and the first conference series between the two.
On Deck
Following the series, the Knights will return to the Sunshine State to face Jacksonville in midweek action on Tuesday, March 26 at John Sessions Stadium. UCF will then return home to welcome Texas Tech to John Euliano Park Thursday to Saturday, March 28-30.