SALT LAKE CITY – John Smith III and Zak Skinner combined to drive in 12 runs on the day en route to leading UCF baseball to a doubleheader sweep over Utah by scores of 12-4 and 10-0 to sweep the Utes in the three-game Big 12 series on Saturday afternoon at America First Ballpark in Salt Lake City.
The Knights also had stellar bullpen work in the first game of the twin bill thanks to eight solid innings from the trio of Kaniel Rosado, Anthony Lariz and Kris Sosnowski. Camden Wicker then dominated on the mound in the nightcap by tossing a seven-inning complete-game victory on his way to helping lead the Black and Gold to their second run-rule win on the weekend.
UCF improved to 25-15 with the doubleheader sweep and moved into second place in the league standings with a 14-7 conference mark. Utah dropped to 21-18 overall and 9-12 in conference play with the setbacks.
“It started on the mound. Rosado, Sosnowski and Wicker were all outstanding and pitched their tails off all day long,” head UCF coach Rich Wallace said. “Offensively, we kind of hit our stride from that sixth inning on and outscored them 21-1 over the final 11 innings.”
Game One
The Knights got off to a quick start by plating a run in the top of the first to jump out to a 1-0 advantage. Andrew Williamson walked, reached second on a wild pitch, and scored on a Skinner RBI single up the middle.
The Utes answered right back, however, with a two-run home run from Daniel Arambula in the bottom of the inning to take a 2-1 lead. Utah then added a solo homer from Matt Flaharty in the second to make it 3-1.
Freshman reliever Kaniel Rosado then entered on the mound and had a strong outing by retiring 11 of the next 12 batters he faced. He also struck out a season-high six batters and allowed just one run on one hit over a season-long 4.0 innings.
What an outing from freshman LHP Kaniel Rosado❗
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 25, 2026
4.0 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 6 K pic.twitter.com/5GohPjoOim
The UCF offense then got a run back in the sixth when John Smith III launched his eighth home run of the season out to center field for a solo shot to make it 3-2. Smith III’s homer traveled 403 feet and was clocked at 101 MPH off the bat. The Knights later threatened in the frame with two on and two out, but DeAmez Ross hit a hard line out to end the threat.
John Smith III hits a solo shot out to center field 💥 pic.twitter.com/HupFmYvP9u
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 25, 2026
The Utes got a run back in the bottom of the sixth to extend their lead to 4-2. But back answered UCF with three runs in the seventh to take a 5-4 advantage and added seven more in the eighth to put the game out of reach. Smith III tied things up in the seventh by blasting out his second home run of the game—a two-out two-run shot that cleared the batter’s eye in center field for his second multi-homer game of the season. The catcher Skinner then followed him up by going back-to-back by pulling an inside-the-park home run down the rightfield line to give the Knights the lead.
Big John Smith ties it up with a two-run bomb over the batter's eye--460 feet ‼️ pic.twitter.com/odQS4gfcvq
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 25, 2026
Zak Skinner goes back-to-back with an inside-the-park home run ✨ pic.twitter.com/sMKsUinw7P
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 25, 2026
In the eighth, the Black and Gold added seven runs on six hits. Landon Moran, Ross, Jordan Lodise, and Williamson all doubled for the first three runs of the frame. Skinner then followed with a two-run single though the left side and Javier Crespo capped the scoring in the inning with an RBI single to left field.
Skinner drives in two more runs! He's now 4-for-5 with 4 RBIs 👊 pic.twitter.com/30JnKN4nw0
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 25, 2026
Senior reliever Kris Sosnowski finished things off by tossing the final three innings of scoreless relief. Sosnowski allowed just two baserunners while striking out a season-high three batters. He retired the side in order both the seventh and ninth innings to seal the victory.
Reliever Anthony Lariz earned the win in relief to move to 3-0 on the season while Sosnowski was credited with his team-leading fourth save. Utah’s Demitri Diamant was tagged with the loss to drop to 2-1 on the year.
Offensively, Skinner led the way by going 4-for-5 with a game-high four RBIs, a home run, and two runs scored. Smith III was next by homering twice on his way to a 2-for-5 outing with three runs scored and three RBIs. Moran also had a multi-hit game by going 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored. In all, UCF tallied 13 hits with seven of those being for extra bases.
Zak Skinner postgame 🔽 pic.twitter.com/KmqlqDXLtp
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 25, 2026
Game Two
The Knights kept the momentum going in the early stages of the nightcap, as they scored four first-inning runs to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Williamson led off the game with a single and Smith III immediately followed by blasting out his third home run of the day with a two-run shot to deep left field. The round tripper traveled 440 feet and tied him for the team-lead with his 10th homer of the season. Crespo later reached base on a fielder’s choice and came in to score on a Utah failed pickoff while Ross capped the scoring in the inning by pulling a sharp RBI single through the right side.
John Smith rockets out his 3rd HOME RUN of the day 🚀 pic.twitter.com/6LX270zqI2
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 26, 2026
With the starter Wicker putting up zeros on the scoreboard, the Black and Gold added a run in the third and five more in the fourth to take a 10-0 advantage. With Skinner in scoring position following a sac bunt from Crespo, Moran drove him home with an RBI single to make it 5-0.
Then in the fourth, UCF loaded the bases with nobody out and Smith III continued to produce with a two-run single to make it 7-0. Skinner immediately followed with an RBI double, and Crespo capped the scoring in the frame with a two-run single up the middle.
It's now 10-0 Knights, as Crespo plates two more runs 🔥 pic.twitter.com/QjPloEpq4G
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 26, 2026
Wicker retired the side in order in the bottom of the fourth and stranded a runner on the base paths in both the fifth and sixth innings. He also pitched around a two-out walk in the seventh inning to earn the seven-inning complete-game victory.
Wicker dazzled on the mound all night long, as he allowed just two hits and no runs to earn the first complete-game victory of his career. The 7.0 dominant innings tied a career-long for Wicker. He also struck out five batters on the night and faced the minimum in three of his seven innings. In all, just four batters reached base off of him in the contest.
Complete-game gem from Wick 🤝 pic.twitter.com/JWI28PQBAN
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 26, 2026
“We needed a start like that from Wicker as we were short on available bullpen arms and he delivered,” Wallace said. “He was completely dominant from the opening pitch. It was exactly what we needed, and I’m proud of Cam.”
From the plate, Smith III led the Knights by going 3-for-4 with four RBIs, a home run and two runs scored. Crespo was next by going 2-for-3 with two runs batted in and a run scored. Skinner, Moran and Ross each finished with two hits apiece, drove in a run, and scored at least one run. In all, UCF put up 12 hits to just Utah’s two.
For the series, UCF outscored Utah 34-6 and also outhit the Utes 40-18.
The Knights have now won four straight after going a perfect 4-0 on the road on the week with the sweep at Utah as well as a midweek victory at Bethune-Cookman this past Tuesday.
On Deck
The Knights will now return to the Sunshine State to take on neighboring foe Stetson in midweek action on Wednesday, April 29 at 6:30 p.m. in Lakeland as part of the Tigertown Collegiate Classic. Following Wednesday’s game, UCF will return to John Euliano Park for a key Big 12 series against No. 23 Arizona State next weekend.
John Smith postgame interview ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/uW3cwWLpAB
— UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 26, 2026