ORLANDO – After a successful opening series, which saw the team sweep Siena by the combined score of 40-5, the UCF baseball team will return to John Euliano Park on Thursday to kick off a stretch of four games in four days.
On Thursday, the Knights will take on Missouri in a midweek game that was initially supposed to be played on Wednesday but was moved back a day due to projected weather. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. and right-hander Matt Sauser is scheduled to get the start for the Black and Gold. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Then on Friday, UCF will begin a three-game series against Bryant. Friday and Saturday’s games are scheduled to begin at 6 pm., while the series finale on Sunday is set for 1 p.m. Friday’s game will air live on ESPN +, while live audio will be available for Saturday and Sunday’s games via UCF’s YouTube channel. Right-handers Dom Stagliano (Friday), Wiley Hartley (Saturday) and Grant Siegel (Sunday) are scheduled to take the ball for the Black and Gold in the Bryant series.
The Knights will enter Thursday with a 3-0 record on the young season and currently receiving votes for the most recent NCBWA Top 25 Poll. The Black and Gold scored double digits in all three games last weekend en route to sweeping Siena via scores of 13-4, 11-0 and 16-1.
In the three games last weekend, UCF outhit the Saints 44-17 on its way to outscoring Siena 40-5. Junior second baseman Braden Calise led the way by hitting .636 on opening weekend with six runs scored and a pair of stolen bases, while senior outfielder Matt Prevesk batted .545 with two home runs and eight runs batted in. In Sunday’s finale, Prevesk recorded the first two-home run game of his career as he belted out a pair of round trippers while also driving in a career-best five runs to help lead the Black and Gold to a 16-1 victory in the series finale.
As a team, UCF will enter the week leading the Big 12 in hitting, slugging and on-base percentage with a .404 batting average, .633 slugging percentage and a .532 on-base clip. A total of 10 Knights are currently hitting .300 or better on the year. On the mound, the Black and Gold staff held the Saints to just three runs this past weekend over 27.0 innings for a 1.33 ERA, which currently ranks second in the Big 12.
BEWARE OF THE BULLPEN
A major highlight from the Knights’ previous series against Siena was the performance of its bullpen. UCF sent a total of 10 relief pitchers to the mound this past weekend. Those relievers combined for 13.1 innings pitched, in which they gave up only a single run and six hits. They recorded a combined 0.68 ERA and 18 strikeouts.
Some of the notable performances came from the likes of Carter Stanford, who was brought in during the final inning of game two. In his lone inning, he struck out all three batters he faced. Some other highlights were Dominic Castellano retiring all nine men he faced and striking out five batters in three innings of work and Kevin Schoneboom earning the win in game one.
ABOUT MIZZOU
Missouri enters the contest coming off a 1-2 showing in the Puerto Rico Challenge last week. After falling to Penn State, Mizzou then topped UConn 11-7 before dropping a 9-7 contest to Stetson.
The Tigers finished the 2024 season with a 23-32 overall record, posting a 9-21 record in the SEC to finish 13th overall. Missouri is projected to finish 16th in the SEC this year, according to the 2025 SEC Baseball Preseason Coaches’ Poll. The program is led by second-year head coach Kerrick Jackson, who is in his second stint there after having previously been at Mizzou as an assistant coach from 2011-2015.
Some of the Tigers’ standout performers so far this year include infielder/outfielder Brock Daniels, as he leads his team with a .400 batting average and a team-best five runs scored. Catcher Mateo Serna also comes in with a .364 batting average and is tied for the team-high with four RBIs. Jackson Lovich also tops the stat sheet, posting a tied team-high four RBIs and a .250 batting average. On the mound, pitcher Ian Lohse has gotten off to a strong start with a 2.25 earned run average and a team-high eight strikeouts.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MIZZOU
Thursday’s contest against Missouri will mark only the fourth meeting between the Knights and Tigers, as UCF will look to even up its 1-2 series record. All prior three meetings have been played in Orlando, as the Tigers claimed a pair of one-run games in 1991, but UCF responded by winning a 10-9 outing in 2008.
ABOUT BRYANT
The Bryant Bulldogs opened their 2025 season at Davidson last Friday. They went 1-1 against the Wildcats with their third game of the season being canceled due to weather.
Bryant’s 2024 team finished its season by winning the America East Regular Season and Tournament Championships to qualify for the NCAA Raleigh Regional. Bryant made an appearance at the NCAA Regional for the fourth time in school history, where they earned No. 4 seed. Bryant finished the season 36-21, which marked the most wins by an America East school since 2016.
Bryant was picked to win the America East again this season in the conference’s preseason poll. Five Bulldogs were also named to the preseason All-America East Preseason Team in Gavin Noriega (OF), Zac Zyons (2B), Luke Delongchamp (SP), Justin Hackett (SS) and Shea Grady (UTL).
Pat D’Amico currently leads the Bulldogs on the season with an even .500 batting average, while Brandon Durand has two homers and a team-best five RBIs. Michael Belcher fronts the rotation, holding a perfect 0.00 ERA and seven strikeouts over 4.0 innings of work.
Bryant is led by head coach Ryan Klosterman, who is in his sixth season at the helm. Klosterman was a former UCF assistant coach, as he spent eight seasons with the Knights (2012-2019).
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. BRYANT
Friday’s opener will mark just the second all-time meeting between the Knights and Bulldogs. UCF holds a 1-0 series advantage after pulling out a 12-11 victory in the 2024 season opener at John Euliano Park last season. The final two games that were scheduled in the series last season were unfortunately washed out due to rain.
CASTELLANO AND SOSNOWKSI NAMED TO NCBWA PRESEASON STOPPER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST
A pair of UCF relievers were named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watch List in Dominic Castellano and Kris Sosnowski. The senior southpaw Castellano went a perfect 7-0 in 2024 with a 2.83 ERA, three saves and 68 strikeouts in 60.1 innings, the redshirt junior RHP Sosnowski posted a 1-0 record with a 3.38 ERA, six saves and 40 punchouts in 37.1 innings.
TRIO OF KNIGHTS NAMED TO D1BASEBALL’S PRESEASON PLAYER LIST
A trio of Knights were named to D1Baseball Preseason Player Lists prior to the season in relief pitcher Kris Sosnowski, starting pitcher Dom Stagliano and third baseman Kendrey Maduro. The redshirt junior and 2024 UCF closer Sosnowski led the group by checking in at No. 16 on D1Baseball’s Top 100 Relievers, while the senior Stagliano was ranked No. 85 on the Top 150 Starting Pitchers and junior college transfer Kendrey Maduro is tabbed No. 43 on the Top 50 Third Basemen preseason ranking.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
As voted on by the players, UCF named six captains prior to the 2025 season in pitchers Dominic Castellano (Sr., LHP), Wiley Hartley (RSr., RHP) and Kris Sosnowski (RJr., RHP), as well as infielders Lex Boedicker (Sr., 1B) and Braden Calise (RJr, 2B) and catcher Dylan King (RJr.).
The six captains bring a combined total of 19 prior seasons of collegiate experience to the mix, as Boedicker, Castellano, Calise, King and Sosnowski have played three years apiece and Hartley four. All six captains have postseason experience from playing on last season’s team that made it to the Tallahassee Regional.
BAUER IS BACK
Senior RHP Spencer Bauer was granted an extra year of eligibility prior to the spring semester and is back for his sixth season. Bauer was a key reliever for the Knights last year in which he went 2-1 with a 4.32 ERA and struck out 37 batters over 24 appearances. He will look to be a key piece to UCF’s bullpen this year.
JUMPING OVER FROM JUCO
Of the Knights 18 transfers, eight are coming from junior colleges. Seven of them come from schools in Florida while the eighth player, junior right-handed pitcher Kevin Schoneboom, comes from Texas (Northeast Texas). The seven from Florida JUCOs are Erick Almonte (Jr., INF, State College of Florida), Edian Espinal (Jr., INF, Chipola), Kendrey Maduro (Jr., INF, Northwest Florida State), Aris Rivera (Jr., C, Polk State), Angelo Smith (Jr., RHP, Indian River State), Carter Stanford (Jr., RHP, Tallahassee State) and Payton Waters (Jr., RHP, St. Johns River State). Big things are expected from the group, as Maduro started the team’s first three games at third base and a number of the pitchers are anticipated to be key contributors.
ON DECK FOR UCF
Following the Bryant series, the Knights will close an eight-game homestand by hosting Florida Atlantic in midweek action on Tuesday, Feb. 25. The game is set for a 6 p.m. After Tuesday’s midweek, UCF will then head west on I-4 to face a familiar foe with a three-game series at South Florida next weekend. The series will run Friday to Sunday, Feb. 28-March 2 at USF Baseball Stadium in Tampa.
🚨 New Game Times Thur.-Sun. 🚨
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) February 18, 2025
*Wednesday’s scheduled game against Missouri has been moved to Thursday* pic.twitter.com/a3l5R4C3M0