ORLANDO – Zak Skinner delivered a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to propel UCF baseball to a 2-1 victory over South Florida in the series finale on Sunday afternoon at John Euliano Park.
The Knights avoided the series sweep with the win to move to 5-5 overall while the Bulls dropped to 9-3 with the setback.
“It wasn’t pretty from an offensive standpoint, but I thought the pitching was pretty top-notch,” head UCF coach Rich Wallace said. “There was also some toughness that showed there. It doesn’t always have to be pretty, but it does need to be tough, and they hung in there and found a way to get the job done.”
Reminiscent of the game two matchup on Saturday, another pitchers’ duel commenced in the contest. UCF starter Joey Trombley tossed six solid innings in which he allowed just one run while Mateo Gray followed with three shutout innings of relief down the stretch for the Black and Gold.
With two on and two out in the bottom of the second inning, Cayden Gaskin got the scoring started for the afternoon with a line drive to left to send Javier Crespo in for the RBI single to give the Black and Gold a 1-0 lead.
Gaskin with the RBI single🔥 pic.twitter.com/BXkJh43XIc
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) March 1, 2026
Trombley held the Bulls in check early by not allowing a run until the sixth inning. The right-hander faced the minimum in both the first and fifth innings. South Florida would respond in the sixth inning, however, with a two-out RBI single from Eli Thomas to knot the game up 1-1.
The sophomore Gray then entered and shined in relief for the Black and Gold. Gray retired nine of the 12 batters he faced, striking out five. The right-hander did a nice job in both the seventh and ninth frames by stranding runners in scoring position with inning-ending strikeouts in each inning to keep the game deadlocked at 1-1.
Gray sends us to the bottom of the 9th with his 5th strikeout‼️ pic.twitter.com/JmyZUg8yEY
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) March 1, 2026
With the game knotted up in the bottom of the ninth, the Knights placed themselves in prime position to seal the victory. Andrew Williamson kicked the frame off with a walk, followed by John Smith III getting hit by a second pitch in the game. Austin Jacobs then delivered a clutch single through the right side of the infield to load the bases. The senior catcher Skinner then worked a full count with the bases loaded and no outs and came through with a sharp single through the right side of the infield to give the Knights the walk-off 2-1 victory.
Skinner with the WALK-OFF RBI single🙌 pic.twitter.com/kLuIrMFLdm
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) March 1, 2026
Skinner led the Knights offensively, going 2-for-4 with a pair of singles and the game-winning RBI. Gaskin finished 1-for-3 with an RBI.
On the mound, Trombley and Gray held USF to just three hits on the afternoon. Trombley went 6.0 innings and surrendered just one run on two hits while striking out four, while Gray followed with a trio of shutout innings in which he gave up just one hit while punching out five. Gray earned his first collegiate victory in relief to move to 1-0 on the season. South Florida reliever Kaden Smith was tagged with the loss to fall to 0-1.
Solid outing from Joey Trombley💪
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) March 1, 2026
6.0 IP
1 R
2 H
4 K pic.twitter.com/NMPsxxMN9z
The series marked the first three games of a current 12-game homestand for Knights.
On Deck
The Black and Gold will continue the homestand by welcoming fellow Sunshine State foe FGCU to John Euliano Park on Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Knights will then host 2025 College World Series participant Murray State for three games next weekend.
Tickets
UCF baseball season tickets and anytime tickets are on sale now! Lock in your seats for every home game starting at just $100. Group options and single-game tickets are also available by visiting ucfknights.com/tickets.
About UCF Athletics
UCF is a proud member of the Big 12 Conference. Our mission is to positively transform the lives of our students academically, athletically, and personally through a nationally competitive intercollegiate athletics program that enhances the reputation and visibility of the University. We strive to be Florida's preeminent athletic program representing UCF and our community with distinction on the national stage as "Orlando's Hometown Team". To learn more about UCF and Athletics, please visit our websites at www.ucf.ecu and www.ucfknights.com.