USF Athletics

Bulls Continue to Battle ACC Elite; Head to Florida State Tuesday

February 19, 2018

Matchup: USF at No. 5 Florida State
Date: Tuesday, Feb. 20
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Tallahassee, Fla., | Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium (6,700)  
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Game Notes

TAMPA, Feb. 19, 2018 – Looking to make yet another statement in 2018, the University of South Florida baseball team has its first road test at No. 5 Florida State Tuesday at 4 p.m.

The Bulls (1-2) nearly took 2-of-3 from No. 6 North Carolina in the season's opening series. Head coach Billy Mohl picked up his first career win on opening night, being led by a dominant pitching display from All-American lefty Shane McClanahan (Cape Coral, Fla.) (6.0 IP, 0 R, 11 K). After UNC knotted the series with a win Saturday, the Bulls were down 8-1 in the seventh inning on Sunday. USF manufactured seven runs to tie the game and send things into extras. But the Tar Heels took a 9-8 lead in the 10^th and held on for the win.

SERIES HISTORY
The Bulls and Seminoles will meet for the 87^th time Tuesday. Florida State owns the series with a 69-17 advantage. USF ended a 15-game slide in the series with a 4-2 win at then-No. 3 Florida State last season, the first win in the series since 1989. The Bulls scored four runs in the final two innings to win. The Bulls' bullpen combined for 6.0 scoreless, no-hit innings, allowing just one walk with eight strikeouts.

PITCHING MATCHUP
USF – Alec Wisely (0-0, 20.25 ERA)
FSU – Andrew Karp (1-0, 0.00 ERA)

SCOUTING REPORT
Florida State swept its opening series against Xavier behind excellent pitching. FSU allowed just three earned runs on the weekend and struck out 43 hitters. The Seminole bullpen did not allow an earned run or a walk in 11.1 innings of work. Head coach Mike Martin needs just 29 more wins to become the all-time winningest coach in NCAA baseball history.

NOTABLES

• Junior transfer Alec Wisely (Jacksonville) has established himself as a jack of all trades. He'll be getting his first start Tuesday, and led the Bulls against UNC, hitting .429 on the weekend with two runs and four RBI.
• Juniors David Villar (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) and Chris Chatfield (Riverview, Fla.) are both hitting at or above .300 after the opening weekend. The two had home runs on Saturday and each went 2-for-4 on Sunday.
• The Bulls tallied 10 hits on Sunday. USF reached double-digit hits 31 times in 2017.
• USF recorded 16 strikeouts on opening night. The Bulls set a program record with 620 in 2017.  

About USF Baseball
The University of South Florida baseball team is one of the fastest rising programs in the country. The Bulls reached the NCAA Regionals in 2015 for the first time in 13 years and followed that success with a 42-19 record and second NCAA regional trip in three years in 2017. The Bulls earned just their second and third wins over top-five ranked teams with victories against then-No. 3 Florida State and at then-No. 5 Florida during the 2017 season. During the 2017 season, USF reached the 40-win mark for the first time since 1996 and entered the top-25 in the major collegiate baseball polls for the first time since 2013. The USF Baseball program has won five conference titles and the Bulls have made 12 NCAA appearances.