TAMPA (MARCH 20, 2016) – The University of South Florida baseball team (12-9) hit a season-high four home runs to defeat No. 25 Michigan State 7-5 on Sunday afternoon. The victory marked the first Bulls series win over a ranked team since sweeping No. 26 Pittsburgh in a three game set three seasons ago (April 5-7, 2013).
“We are making progress and it was a good series for us,” said USF head baseball coach Mark Kingston. “After losing convincingly Friday night, we could have just let it affect our confidence…the guys played really well last night, and we played a really good ballgame today.”
Down 1-0, the Bulls pulled ahead in the bottom of the first. Catcher Levi Borders (Winter Haven, Fla.) hit a go-ahead three-run home run to left field and outfielder Chris Chatfield (Riverview, Fla.) followed that up in the next at-bat with an inside the park home run to center field.
Down by three, the Spartans rallied back in the second. MSU tallied two unearned runs in the frame before pitcher Joe Cavallaro (Venice, Fla.) left the bases full with an inning-ending strikeout.
Ahead 4-3, USF increased the lead with a solo home run from infielder Coco Montes (Miami, Fla.) in the bottom of the second. The home run for Montes was the first of his career and third for the Bulls in the game.
The home runs continued for USF in the fourth when designated hitter Joe Genord (Lake Worth, Fla.) connected on a solo shot to center field. Montes also scored later in the inning on an RBI triple by Kevin Merrell (Odessa, Fla.) for the 7-3 lead.
Cavallaro maintained the lead through his 5.0 innings of work. Despite the Bulls bullpen allowing two runs in the sixth, reliever Andrew Perez (Orlando, Fla.) fired 2.1 hitless innings to keep USF ahead 7-5 to the ninth.
The Spartans had one last rally in them. MSU put the first two men on base in the ninth but USF closer Tommy Eveld (Tampa, Fla.) prevented a sacrifice bunt by throwing out the go-ahead runner at third. Following a fly out and a walk, the bases were loaded for outfielder Marty Bechina. With the tying run at second and the go-ahead run at first, Eveld forced Becina to fly out to right field to end the game and earn the series win for USF.
The series victory is the fifth straight weekend series win for the Bulls to begin the 2016 season.
Cavallaro (3-0) stays undefeated with the win. He threw 5.0 innings, allowing three runs (one earned). Eveld's save was his second of the series and fifth on the season.
The Bulls have not hit four home runs in a game since their 13-3 win over Savannah State on March 3, 2013, a span of 230 games.
Three of the USF home runs were hit by freshman - Chatfield's home run was his team-leading fifth of the season, Genord upped his total to two and Montes now stands at one.
The home run for Levi Borders was his third of the year.
Genord, Merrell and Montes all posted two hits each in the game. Montes is the lone Bulls player with two runs scored in the series finale.
USF's next game will be on the road at Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
The Bulls return home on Friday to begin a three game weekend series with Dartmouth. Reserve your seats at USFBullsTix.com.
The University of South Florida baseball team is one of the fastest rising programs in the country. Under the guidance of first year head coach Mark Kingston, the Bulls reached the NCAA Regionals last season for the first time in 13 years and USF followed that success with a consensus Top 10 recruiting class. The team returns outfielder Kevin Merrell, who was named an NCBWA Freshmen All-American last season after leading the Bulls in batting average (.346), runs (45), hits (83) and stolen bases (21). Senior catcher Levi Borders and senior outfielder Luke Maglich were both selected to the 2016 Preseason All-Conference Team in the AAC. The USF Baseball program has won five conference titles and the Bulls have made 11 NCAA appearances. Follow the baseball team on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.
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