TAMPA, Fla. - The University of South Florida baseball team exploded for a 17-4 victory over No. 25 University of Central Florida Tuesday night in Orlando.
USF is now 14-13 overall while the nationally-ranked Knights drop to 22-7.
"We are going to find nine guys that are going to do the job," said head coach Lelo Prado. "We have young guys like [Stephen] Hunt and [Junior] Carlin who want to play, and we are going to keep throwing them out there. They came out big today and brought a lot of energy to the field."
Freshman designated hitter Stephen Hunt broke out in the game, hitting 3-for-6, blasting a home run in the third, a single in the fifth and a double just one inning later. He also recorded four RBI and one run scored. In his first start in the outfield, freshman Junior Carlin was hit by a pitch in the first, doubled to left center in the second and singled to center in the third.
The Bulls' 17 hits and 17 runs are the most this season, surpassing their old marks of 13 hits, which they have achieved four times this season, and 14 runs, which were scored at Cincinnati on March 21. USF's 17 runs scored also ties the most against the UCF Knights in the all-time series. Previously, the Bulls had scored 17 in both 2001 and in 1993.
All nine starters recorded at least one hit in USF's 14th win of the year, with four Bulls collecting three hits and a pair recording two.
Freshman Matt Stull earned his second win of the season, striking out three, while allowing one earned run on five hits in 6.0 innings of work. Two more rookies, Kevin Quackenbush and Doug Wagner, also took the mound for USF, combining for four Ks in 3.0 IP.
The Bulls jumped onto the scoreboard quickly, scoring a dozen runs over the first three innings to take the early 12-1 lead. UCF scored one in the first, another in the fourth and two in the eighth, but the Bulls continued to cross the plate, recording three in the fifth and two in the sixth to take the 13-run win.
Senior Joey Angelberger and junior Addison Maruszak each tallied three singles, while freshman Ryan Lockwood picked up two doubles and a base hit. Lockwood, who extended his hitting streak to 10 games, also scored four runs and drove in two.
The Bulls were just one hit by pitch shy of the school record of nine plunks that was set earlier in the season, March 9 against Savannah State.
USF faces Bethune-Cookman Wednesday night in Tampa at 7 p.m. before hitting the road for a three-game BIG EAST weekend series at West Virginia April 4-6 in Morgantown. The Bulls and Mountaineers face off at 7 p.m., 3 p.m. and 1 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Website Wednesday
USF's next Website Wednesday will be April 2 as the Bulls face off against Bethune-Cookman University at 7 p.m. at Red McEwen Field. Tear out the coupon on http://www.gousfbulls.com/ and take it to the concessions stand any time during the USF vs. B-CU game.
