Baseball 2026 Season in ReviewBaseball 2026 Season in Review

Baseball 2026 Season in Review

ORLANDO – The 2026 UCF baseball season was one to remember as the Knights recorded their best finish of the Big 12 era and capped the campaign with their second NCAA Tournament appearance in the past three seasons.

UCF posted a 32-23 overall record and finished 19-11 in Big 12 Conference play. The Knights earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the NCAA Auburn Regional, marking the program’s 14th all-time postseason appearance.

MOST CONFERENCE WINS SINCE 2005

Head coach Rich Wallace’s 2026 squad recorded 19 Big 12 victories and tied for third place in the conference standings, both representing program bests since joining the league. The 19 conference wins were the most by a UCF team since 2005, when the Knights competed in the Atlantic Sun Conference.

The Black and Gold won seven of their 10 conference series en route to their 19-11 league record. Five of those series victories came against opponents that advanced to the 2025 NCAA Tournament. UCF also recorded three conference sweeps, taking all three games from Oklahoma State and Arizona at home while adding a road sweep at Utah.

The Knights highlighted their conference slate with a series victory at then-No. 11 West Virginia, which later advanced to the Men’s College World Series. UCF also secured series wins over TCU, Baylor and Kansas State.

Their strong regular season earned the Knights the No. 4 seed in the Big 12 Baseball Tournament and a double bye into the quarterfinal round. The fourth-seed marked the highest conference tournament seed of UCF’s Big 12 era.

14TH NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCE

UCF earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, marking the program’s 14th regional appearance and second in the last three years. The Knights were selected as the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Auburn Regional, only the second NCAA Regional appearance in program history outside the state of Florida.

The Black and Gold celebrated their selection by hosting a pool party while watching the NCAA Selection Show.

 

The Knights opened regional play with an impressive 9-3 victory over No. 3 seed NC State behind a three-home run performance from Andrew Williamson. UCF finished one win shy of advancing to the regional final, posting a 1-2 record after setbacks to Milwaukee and regional host Auburn, the tournament’s No. 4 national seed.

BACK IN THE TOP 25

With their entrance into the national rankings on March 30, the Knights have now been ranked during each of Rich Wallace’s first three seasons as head coach.

In 2024, UCF spent two weeks in the national rankings and climbed as high as No. 17 in the D1Baseball poll and No. 16 by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). The Knights returned to the rankings in 2025, spending a week at No. 25 in Perfect Game’s national poll.

After debuting at No. 23 in the D1Baseball rankings on March 30, UCF jumped 11 spots to No. 12 the following week before settling at No. 21 the next week. The Knights ultimately finished the season receiving votes in the final NCBWA Top 25 poll.

UCF’s series victory at No. 11 West Virginia marked the program’s first ranked-versus-ranked series win since May 2017 and its first series victory over a ranked opponent since taking two of three games from then-No. 15 TCU in April 2025.

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EIGHT KNIGHTS ALL-BIG 12 HONORS

UCF placed eight players on the All-Big 12 teams, led by Second Team All-Big 12 selections John Smith III (OF), Andrew Williamson (OF) and Camden Wicker (RHP).

Freshmen Jordan Lodise (SS) and Max Murray (RHP) were named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team, while Evan Jones (RHP), Kris Sosnowski (RHP) and Zak Skinner (C) earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention recognition.

WILLIAMSON'S STELLAR SEASON

Junior outfielder Andrew Williamson delivered another standout campaign, earning Second Team All-Big 12 honors and a spot on the NCAA Auburn Regional All-Tournament Team.

A native of St. Petersburg, Florida, Williamson entered the season as a Preseason All-Big 12 selection and a member of the prestigious Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. He was also named Perfect Game National Player of the Week after batting .600 with three home runs during UCF’s series win at then-No. 11 West Virginia.

Williamson tied a program record with three home runs in UCF’s regional-opening victory over NC State. He finished the game 3-for-4 with three homers, three runs scored and a career-high six RBIs. He followed with another home run against Milwaukee and concluded the weekend batting .364 with a 1.917 OPS, four home runs, four runs scored and seven RBIs.

For the season, Williamson hit .322 while leading the team in home runs (16), triples (4), runs scored (58), slugging percentage (.645) and on-base percentage (.442). He also ranked second on the team with 13 doubles and 48 RBIs while recording three outfield assists from right field.

 

CARDIAC KNIGHTS

The Knights recorded five walk-off victories during the season, with the first four coming on consecutive Sundays over a five-week stretch in March.

The run began with a 2-1 victory over South Florida on March 1. Locked in a 1-1 tie entering the bottom of the ninth inning, Zak Skinner delivered an RBI single to secure the walk-off win.

One week later, UCF authored one of its most dramatic comebacks of the season. Trailing Murray State 9-4 entering the bottom of the ninth on March 8, the Knights scored six runs in the frame to earn a 10-9 walk-off victory. Cayden Gaskin capped the rally with a pinch-hit RBI single to left-center field.

The following Sunday, UCF completed its first Big 12 series sweep since joining the conference with a 6-5 walk-off win over Oklahoma State. After the Cowboys tied the game in the ninth, James Hankerson Jr. immediately answered with a walk-off RBI single.

The streak continued on March 29 when the Knights outlasted Arizona in a 13-inning thriller. Freshman Stephen Chucka came off the bench and delivered a walk-off RBI single to complete the sweep.

UCF’s fifth and final walk-off came in the regular-season finale against Kansas State on May 16. Chucka tied the game with a pinch-hit solo home run before Landon Moran reached on a walk-off error that allowed Williamson to score the winning run.

WHERE THE KNIGHTS RANKED NATIONALLY AND IN THE BIG 12

UCF’s pitching staff was the foundation of the team’s success, finishing 21st nationally in hits allowed per nine innings and 25th in WHIP. The Knights also ranked 39th nationally in ERA and finished just outside the top 50 in fielding percentage.

Within the Big 12, the Black and Gold ranked among the conference’s top three teams in ERA, WHIP, hits allowed per nine innings, fielding percentage, shutouts and sacrifice bunts, further showcasing the program’s balanced and disciplined approach throughout the 2026 season.

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.edu and www.ucfknights.com.