TAMPA, FLA., MARCH 22, 2019 – Junior righty
Collin Sullivan struck out a career high 11 over 7.0 innings to lead the USF baseball team to a 4-2 win over Cincinnati in the American Athletic Conference opener Friday night.
The Bulls (12-8, 1-0 The American) found themselves down in the second after the Bearcats (6-14, 0-1 The American) hit a solo home run. Though he struck out five, Sullivan (Randolph, Mass.) surrendered the run and a pair of hits across the first two innings.
The junior righty settled down in a big way, allowing just one hit and three baserunners over the next five frames. It allowed the USF offense to get something going in the fifth. After the Bulls loaded the bases with one out, senior
Kyle Phillips (Orlando) singled to right, scoring classmate
Chris Chatfield (Riverview) to tie things up.
Fellow senior
Joe Genord (Lake Worth, Fla.) wore a pitch on the shoulder in the next at-bat with the bases still loaded to bring in another run, making it 2-1. Chatfield began a two-out rally in the sixth with a single to center. After consecutive walks loaded the bags, junior
Jordan Santos (Tampa) stepped into the box. The conferences walk leader did what he does best, working a seven pitch count into another base-on-balls to make it 3-1.
USF added an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh on a
Tyler Dietrich (Naples, Fla.) double to right center, scoring
Austin Bodrato (Northvale, N.J.) from first. Junior righty
Nelson Alvarez (Miami) closed things out with a two-inning save.
Key Stats
11 – Career high strikeouts for Sullivan.
22 – Santos's conference best walks, as he worked three Friday.
4 – USF improves to 4-2 American Athletic Conference openers.
Nota-Bulls
- Santos, Phillips and Chatfield led the offense with two hits apiece.
- Chatfield scored two runs.
- Alvarez now has four saves on the year.
- Sullivan finished with 11 strikeouts in 7.0 innings, with just three hits one run allowed.
Up Next
The Bulls and Bearcats continue the series Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
Alec Wisely gets the start for the Bulls. The game can be seen on BullsVision and heard on 1040 AM.
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 continued the success under first-year head coach Billy Mohl in 2018, reaching 36 wins and advancing to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the first time since 2012, while being ranked in multiple polls for the final two months. USF earned its third NCAA Regional berth in the last four seasons and had six all-conference selections in 2018. The team had four players drafted in the 2018 MLB Draft, including the program's fourth first rounder, Shane McClanahan. Junior third baseman David Villar was taken in the 11th round after tallying 24 doubles and hitting better than .370, being named first team all-conference and an All-American. The USF Baseball program has won five conference titles and the Bulls have made 13 NCAA appearances.
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