NEW ORLEANS, APRIL 1, 2017 – The University of South Florida baseball team trimmed a 4-1 deficit after seven to 4-3 in the ninth, but could not complete the comeback and fell to Tulane in the middle game of the opening American Athletic Conference series.     

The Green Wave (12-15, 2-0 AAC) took a lead in the third with a two-run blast to left and were able to maintain the edge thanks to three double plays through the first four innings. The Bulls (23-5, 0-2) would continuously get men on base, but Tulane silenced any threat by turning two time after time.

After redshirt-freshman Shane McClanahan (Cape Coral, Fla.) worked out of a bases loaded, one out jam in the fifth, USF finally broke through on a Coco Montes (Miami) solo homerun to center in the sixth, making it 2-1. But Tulane answered with two more in the bottom of the seventh to make it 4-1.

Sophomore Joe Genord (Lake Worth, Fla.) made things very interesting with a two-run homer to left field in the bottom of the ninth with just one away, but the Bulls were unable to complete the comeback.

Key Stats

·         Genord went 2-for-3 with a run and two RBI, as the homerun was his team-leading fifth of the year.

·         Montes's blast was his fourth of the season.

·         Junior Kevin Merrell (Odessa, Fla.) went 2-for-4, and classmate Duke Stunkel Jr. (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) hit his 11th double of the season.

·         McClanahan tossed 6.1 innings, allowed six hits and was credited with all four of the Green Wave's runs. He struck out four in the loss.

Notables

·         The Bulls dropped a second-straight game for the first time this season and are not in line to win a series for the first time this year. 

·         This is also the first time this year that USF has scored less than five runs in consecutive games.

·         After not hitting a homerun since March 21, the Bulls clubbed two.  

Up Next

The Bulls and Green Wave wrap up the opening AAC series Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

About USF Baseball

The University of South Florida baseball team is one of the fastest rising programs in the country. Under the guidance of head coach Mark Kingston, the Bulls reached the NCAA Regionals in 2015 for the first time in 13 years and USF followed that success with a consensus Top 10 recruiting class. Five players from that recruiting class were everyday starters in 2016 including outfielder Chris Chatfield (Riverview, Fla.), who led the team in home runs, and catcher Joe Genord (Lake Worth, Fla.), who was named the 2016 PGCBL Player of the Year. The Bulls won series from two ranked teams in 2016 (No. 21 East Carolina, No. 25 Michigan State, began the 2017 season with a series win over Iowa and earned just it's second win over a top-five team with a 4-2 victory against No. 3 Florida State on Feb. 21. The win over FSU was part of the best start in program history thanks to a 19-game winning streak, the second-longest in USF Baseball records.

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), visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information, and purchase tickets for upcoming games at USFBullsTix.com. For tickets, contact the USF Ticket Office at 1-800-Go-Bulls or by going online to USFBullsTix.com.

                                                                         – #GoBulls –