By TOM ZEBOLD

USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, FEB. 26, 2016 – Ken Eriksen's Bulls continued to get into a groove with a pair of victories at the USF Tournament on Friday.

Winners of three straight, USF walked off with a 6-5 victory over Kansas before run-ruling UNLV, 9-1, in five innings.  The Bulls (5-7) have scored 24 runs during their winning streak and got home runs from Lauren Evans, Mia Fung and Sam Worrell on the opening day of the USF Tournament.

“I think they're getting comfortable at the plate,” Eriksen said. “… We've actually been hitting the ball at people all year long, even in the games against Auburn, Tennessee and Florida. Good competition and now they're starting to fall a bit. Hopefully the worm has turned.”

The USF Tournament continues Saturday with UNLV-Kansas at 9:15 a.m., followed by USF-Wisconsin at 11:30 a.m. Check out the full tournament schedule HERE and pick up a day pass at USFBullsTix.com.

Game 1: USF 6, Kansas 5

USF erased a 4-0 deficit and Juli Weber hit an RBI walk-off double in the Bulls' 6-5 victory over Kansas.

Down 4-0, Lauren Evans (Land O' Lakes, Fla.) gave the Bulls a spark with a solo homer over the tall wall in left field in the bottom of the first. Evans, who went 3-for-3, has two homers this season after hitting a go-ahead, two-run shot in the sixth inning of a 2-1 win over Illinois State on Feb. 13.

“When you're within three, that's a striking distance situation,” Eriksen said. “Then all the sudden we start chipping away.”

USF (4-7) used another powerful swing and a two-out rally to grab a 5-4 lead in the fifth inning.  

USF cut its deficit in half with a leadoff homer from Mia Fung (Tampa). The sophomore started the week with her second homer of the season in USF's 9-4 win over Jacksonville on Wednesday.

Astin Donovan (Guilford, Conn.) followed with an RBI double and the Bulls kept applying the pressure with two outs. Weber (Hegins, Pa.) scored on a wild pitch and Evans put USF ahead with an RBI double.

Kansas (5-7) answered back in the top of the sixth with a solo homer from Harli Ridling, which set the stage for a dramatic USF victory. Kristen Wyckoff legged out an infield single in the seventh inning and came all the way home on Weber's RBI double to left-center.

“I told myself if Kristen get on, she's fast enough. If I can just hit it in the gap, she's going to score all the way from first,” Weber said. “I wasn't going to let any pitches go by.”

Erica Nunn (1-4) pitched a scoreless seventh inning in her first victory of the season. Susan Wysocki (Cherry Hill, N.J.) gave the Bulls a boost by striking out four and allowing an earned run on four hits in 4.2 innings.

Game 2: USF 9, UNLV 1 (5 innings)

Cassidy Boyle, Lindsey Devitt and Sam Worrell each drove in a pair of runs to help the Bulls take care of UNLV, 9-1, in five innings.

Lee Ann Spivey led the 13-hit attack with a 3-for-3 performance as USF cooled off an 8-5 UNLV team that rolled past Wisconsin, 14-3, in six innings earlier on Friday.

Cheyenne Eggens (4-0) added to her solid freshman season by scattering five hits in a complete game that took only 60 pitches. The right-hander from Vienna, Ohio struck out three and didn't surrender a walk.

UNLV took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first and USF responded with a four runs in the bottom of the second.

Boyle hit an RBI single and freshman Devitt ripped a two-run double down the left field line with no outs. Devitt, a freshman from Jacksonville, came home on a wild pitch with two outs.

Boyle was back in business in the third inning with a two-out RBI single. The sophomore shortstop from Buchanan, N.Y., has two multiple RBI games this season.

USF kept things rolling with a three-run fourth frame that included the Bulls' third home run of the day.

After going 3-for-3 against Kansas, Lauren Evans collected her third RBI of the day with a groundout. Worrell (Oviedo, Fla.) pumped the lead up to 8-1 with a two-run homer that marked the freshman's third round-tripper of the season.

Kenya Yancy (Bradenton, Fla.) raced home on a wild pitch in the fifth inning to cap off a very good day for the Bulls.

“Things are looking great,” Weber said. “We just had a big win coming off Jacksonville and to come out and run-rule a really good team like UNLV, we're all smiles and we're stress-free.”

Be sure to follow USF softball on social media (Twitter / Facebook / Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. Get your season tickets and mini plans HERE. The USF softball program has been one of the most successful on campus, making 12 NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Women's College World Series in 2012.

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