ORLANDO – The UCF baseball team will continue a current 12-game homestand by welcoming Oklahoma State to town for its 2026 Big 12 Conference opening series.
The three-game league series will run Friday to Sunday at John Euliano Park. Friday and Saturday’s games are scheduled for 6 p.m., while Sunday’s series finale is set for noon. All three games will air live on ESPN+ and live stats can be followed by visiting UCF.StatBroadcast.com. Friday and Sunday’s games are also scheduled to air on FM 96.9 The Game and Saturday’s is slated to air on 810 AM Orlando. Radio designations can change this weekend due to men’s basketball’s current run at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Tournament.
“Everybody’s starting 0-0 this week and we’ve been looking at it like we’re playing a Super Regional every weekend,” head UCF coach Rich Wallace said. “It feels like 10 weekends of Super Regional baseball. You have to separate each week and play each week like it is its own competition and find a way to get better.”
The Knights will enter the series with a 9-6 record on the season and having won five of their last six ballgames. The Black and Gold were picked to finish 10th in the Big 12 Conference preseason poll that came out prior to the season. A year ago, the Knights went 29-26 overall and 9-21 in league play to finish in 13th place.
After sweeping 2025 College World Series participant Murray State last weekend, UCF had a five-game winning streak come to a close on Wednesday with a 9-5 setback to in-state foe Miami. Junior Andrew Williamson finished just a double shy of a cycle in the contest and redshirt freshman second baseman Austin Jacobs belted out a three-run home run in the sixth inning, but it wasn’t enough as the Hurricanes held on for the victory.
With Miami holding to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, Williamson hit out his team-leading third home run of the season to tie the game. He then tripled and scored a run in the third to give the Knights a 2-1 lead. Miami answered with three runs in the fourth, one in the fifth and another in the sixth to take a 6-2 lead.
The Black and Gold then struck back with a three-run home run to left field off the bat of Jacobs for his first collegiate home run to cut the deficit to one at 6-5. But back came the Hurricanes with three runs in the seventh to put the game away.
Williamson went 3-for-5 with a single, triple and home run. He added two runs and an RBI. John Smith III was next by going 2-for-5 while Jacobs finished 1-for-4 with the three-run home run. The Knights used a combined 10 pitchers in the ballgame. Freshman Max Murray was tagged with his first loss to fall to 1-1 on the season.
Over the last five games, Jacobs and Landon Moran have led the Black and Gold at the plate by each hitting an even .500. Jacobs also has six RBIs over the stretch. Williamson is next with a .455 average over the last five games with six extra-base hits, six RBIs, eight runs scored, and a whopping 1.455 OPS. Matt Sauser and Braden Smith have led the starting rotation by each going 1-0 on the mound, while reliever Evan Jones has paced the bullpen with a save and six strikeouts over 5.1 innings.
This weekend’s series will mark UCF’s third of seven straight opponents that made the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
Season Leaders
John Smith III fronts the Knights at the plate on the year with a .400 batting average. Catcher Zak Skinner is next with a .340 clip and a team-best 14 runs batted in. Williamson follows with a .333 batting average as well as team-best tallies of five doubles, three triples, three homers, 15 runs scored, five stolen bases, and is second in RBIs with 13. Sauser fronts the starting rotation with a 1-0 record, 0.00 ERA, 16 strikeouts in 18.2 innings, and is yet to allow a run on the season. Braden Smith is next with a 2-1 record, 16 punchouts over 21.2 innings and a 4.15 ERA, while Jones leads the bullpen with a 1-1 record, one save, and a 1.54 ERA.
Scheduled Starting Pitchers
UCF will go with a pair of junior right-handed pitchers this weekend in Braden Smith (2-1, 4.15 ERA) on Friday and Matt Sauser (1-0, 0.00 ERA) on Saturday. Sunday’s starter for the Knights is to be announced. The Cowboys will start southpaw Ethan Lund (3-0, 1.74 ERA) on Friday and right-hander Mario Pesca (1-1, 4.50 ERA) on Saturday. Oklahoma State will also go with a to-be-announced pitcher on Sunday.
About Oklahoma State
The Cowboys will come to Orlando with a 12-4 overall record and having won 11 of their last 12 games. The Pokes took two of three Gardner-Webb last weekend and followed that up with a 6-5 extra-inning victory over Dallas Baptist on Tuesday. Oklahoma State was picked to finish fifth in the Big 12 preseason poll this year after going 30-25 overall and taking seventh in league play with a 15-12 conference mark. OK State had its 2025 season come to a close at the Athens Regional.
Outfielder Kollin Ritchie paces the Pokes with a .362 batting average, 16 extra-base hits, 11 home runs and 31 runs batted in. His 11 round trippers rank third in the nation, and his 31 RBIs are fourth. Alex Conover is next with a .340 batting average and team-best seven stolen bases, while Aidan Meola follows with a .318 average, six home runs, 15 runs scored and 19 RBIs. Southpaw Ethan Lund leads the starting rotation with a 3-0 record, 1.74 ERA, and 40 strikeouts over 20.2 innings. His 40 punchouts are good enough to rank fifth nationally. Hudson Barrett is next with a 2-1 record, 1.86 ERA and 29 strikeouts. Noah Wech paces the bullpen with a 2-0 record, four saves and 0.63 ERA. His four saves rank sixth nationally.
OSU is coached by head coach Josh Holliday. Holliday is in his 14th year at the helm of his alma mater and has amassed nearly 500 career victories (487-267-2). He has led the Cowboys to 12 consecutive NCAA Regional appearances.
Series History vs. Oklahoma State
Friday’s series opener between the Knights and Cowboys will mark the 13th all-time meeting between the two. UCF and Oklahoma State are currently all tied up in series history at 6-6. Since becoming conference foes in 2024, OK State leads the series 5-3, but UCF took two of three from the Pokes the last time the two met in Orlando in 2024.
Braden Smith Named to National Pitcher of the Year Watch List
UCF junior right-handed pitcher has been named to the National Pitcher of the Year Award Watch List as announced by the College Sports Foundation. Smith was named to the watch list after holding a 2-1 record, 4.15 ERA and 16 strikeouts while walking just one batter of a team-best 21.2 innings. He also holds a 1.15 WHIP as UCF’s Friday night starter.
Smith is one of 13 pitchers from the Big 12 to make the cut and one of 141 pitchers in all.
Walk-Off Dubs
UCF’s recent five-game winning streak includes a pair of walk-off victories. The Knights started the win streak with a 2-1 walk-off win over in-state foe South Florida in the series finale on March 1. With the game all deadlocked at 2-1 heading into the last of the ninth, UCF quickly loaded the bases with nobody out. Zak Skinner then worked a full count with the bases loaded and came through with a sharp single through the right side of the infield to give the Knights the walk-off 2-1 victory.
Trailing 9-4 entering the bottom of the ninth against Murray State last Sunday, the Knights put together a last-inning rally for the ages by scoring six runs to record their second walk-off win of the streak. UCF again quickly loaded the bases with nobody out. Javier Crespo started the scoring with an RBI single and John Smith III came in to score on a wild pitch. James Hankerson Jr. then made it a 9-8 score with a two-run pinch hit single and Jordan Lodise evened the score with a safety squeeze. After a sac bunt moved the winning run to third base with only one out, Cayden Gaskin delivered a walk-off pinch-hit RBI single to left center to complete the epic comeback.
12-Game Homestand Continues
The Knights are in the midst of 12-game homestand. Over the homestand, UCF will face six different opponents. The home stretch will span nearly three weeks, and the Black and Gold will play the 12 games over a 19-day span. UCF will face in-state foes South Florida, FGCU and Miami during the homestand as well as 2025 College World Series participant Murray State, Columbia and open Big 12 play against Oklahoma State. UCF is currently 5-3 during the homestand.
Sauser Named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week
Matt Sauser earned Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors for the second time of his career on Feb. 23 after tossing 6.0 dominant innings at No. 20 Miami on Feb. 17. The right-hander was nearly perfect in the outing, as he did not allow a hit over six innings of action. The Bloomington, Illinois native issued just one walk and struck out six over the six hitless and scoreless frames.
In all, Sauser retired the Hurricanes in order in five of his six innings of work. He also allowed just one baserunner to reach on the basepaths.
Williamson Tabbed Preseason All-Big 12
A season removed from earning All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors, junior outfielder Andrew Williamson has been named to the 2026 Preseason All-Big 12 Baseball Team. He enters the season off a stellar sophomore campaign in which he slashed .352/.662/.448 for the Black and Gold. The native of St. Petersburg, Florida led the Knights in nearly every offensive category a season ago in which he batted .352 with team-leading tallies of 13 home runs, 19 doubles, four triples, 58 runs scored and 53 runs batted in. Williamson also led the way in walks (34), on-base percentage (.448), slugging (.662), and finished second in stolen bases by going a perfect 13-for-13.
Williamson led the Knights with a 31‑game reached‑base streak, along with 26 multi‑hit games and 16 multi‑RBI performances in 2025. He also started all 55 games in right field a season ago.
Dorsey and Jones Named to NCBWA Stopper of Year Preseason Watch List
Right-handed pitchers Chandler Dorsey and Evan Jones have been named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watch List. Both are new to the Knights this season, as Dorsey is a senior transfer from LSU while Jones is a redshirt junior from Western Kentucky.
A season ago in Baton Rouge, Dorsey posted an ERA just over five over 5.0 innings of work. He struck out four and tossed scoreless outings in three of his five appearances to help the Tigers claim the 2025 National Championship. During his sophomore campaign at South Florida, he had a stellar season in which he went 2-1 with eight saves and a 3.60 ERA. Over 30.0 innings of work that season, the 6-4 right-hander struck out 41 batters and limited opposing hitters to a .180 average.
During the 2025 season at WKU, Jones compiled a 1-1 record with four saves and a 3.18 ERA. He also limited opposing hitters to a .227 average in 11.1 innings of work. Over 14 appearances, he tossed 10 scoreless outings which included a stretch that spanned over seven consecutive games.
Williamson Named to Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List
In an award given to the top amateur baseball player in the nation, UCF junior outfielder Andrew Williamson was named to the Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. Jimenez was one of 55 players from both the college and high school ranks and five from the Big 12 Conference to make the cut. Williamson slashed .352/.662/.448 in 2025 with 13 HRs, 19 2Bs, 58 runs and 53 RBIs.
Trio of Knights Named to D1Baseball’s Preseason Player List
A trio of Knights were named to D1Baseball’s Preseason Player Lists prior to the season in outfielders Andrew Williamson and DeAmez Ross, and catcher Zak Skinner. The junior OF Williamson led the group by checking in at No. 14 on D1Baseball’s Top 150 Outfielders. The senior transfer Skinner was next by being ranked No. 47 on the Top 50 Catchers List, while the senior Ross was right behind him by coming in at No. 53 on the Outfielders List.
On Deck for UCF
Following the Big 12 opening series, the Knights will close the 12-game homestand with a midweek game against Columbia on Tuesday, March 17 at 6 p.m. UCF will then hit the road for its first true road series of the season with a three-game conference series at No. 14 TCU next weekend.