TAMPA (March 19, 2024) – It was an unusually low-scoring midweek affair on Tuesday night between two high-octane offenses that saw the FGCU Eagles (10-10) walk off with a 3-2 win in the bottom of the ninth inning over the University of South Florida Bulls (11-9).
The Eagles opened the final frame with an infield single which preceded two quick outs. The home team then extended the inning with another infield single, and two batters later ended the game with a flare up the middle that landed just past the diving reach of shortstop
Eric Snow (Forsyth, Ga.)
FGCU struck first in the ballgame with a run in the first inning off
Matt Brown (Oakville, Ontario, Canada), who worked out of a bases-loaded with no out jam to limit the damage.
South Florida promptly tied the game in the top of the second inning on a sacrifice fly by
Stewart Puckett (DeLeon Springs).
Jackson Mayo (St. Johns) led off the fifth frame with a solo homer to give the Bulls their first lead of the night, but the Eagles answered with one of their own in the bottom of the fifth to knot the score at 2-2 where it remained until the ninth inning.
Notable
- The Bulls stole five bases on Tuesday and have stolen four or more bases in a game five times this season. USF has 41 stolen bases this year and has already surpassed last season's total of 39.
- Drew Brutcher (Lakeland) had his 19-game streak of reaching base safely to begin the season halted.
- Mayo was the only Bull with two hits on Tuesday and extended his hitting streak to 10 straight games.
- Nick Pineda (Davie) struck out three over 2.2 IP of scoreless work.
- Mason Manriquez (Wellington) made his first relief appearance of the season and logged 2.0 IP.
Up Next
The Bulls will be right back in action on Wednesday, March 20 with a home game against Florida A&M at 6 p.m. in Tampa.
Double Play Passes, which include one ticket to every home baseball and softball game, can be purchased now for $99. Group and single game tickets are also on sale and can be purchased
here or by calling 1-800-Go-Bulls.
About USF Baseball
The USF Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and is entering its 59th season in 2024 under head coach Billy Mohl (seventh season). The Bulls have made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, including four since 2015, and earned their first-ever Super Regional berth in 2021. USF was ranked in the Top 25 by five different publications in the final 2021 polls, checking in as high as No. 16. The Bulls have won five conference tournament titles (3 Sun Belt, 1 Metro and 1 American) and six regular season championships (3 Sun Belt, 2 Metro and 1 C-USA). USF baseball players have been recognized with All-America honors 12 times, most recently with third baseman David Villar in 2018, and 19 have earned Freshman All-America accolades, most recently Eric Snow in 2023. Four Bulls were selected in the 2022 MLB Draft. Former 2018 first-round selection, Shane McClanahan, became the program's first-ever MLB All-Star in 2022 and was the starting pitcher for the American League.
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