TAMPA (May 17, 2024) – After suffering a narrow 4-3 setback in the series opener on Thursday night, the University of South Florida Bulls (26-28, 11-15 AAC) faced a must-win scenario on Friday against the UAB Blazers (25-27, 12-14 AAC). South Florida answered the call with an 8-4 victory to even the series and keeps its conference tournament hopes alive for another day.
South Florida faces another must-win in Saturday's finale to secure a spot in the AAC Tournament set for May 21-26 in Clearwater. The Bulls could even finish as high as the fifth seed with a win coupled by losses on Friday and Saturday for both Florida Atlantic and Rice.
Friday's ballgame against UAB was highlighted by a six-run third inning for the USF offense and a career-high 10-strikeout performance by Jack Cebert (Tampa.). Cebert (7-6) posted his 10th career quality start and allowed three runs on seven hits over 7.0 IP.
Cebert settled in after allowing a run in the top of the first inning and saw his teammates pick him up with a run in the bottom of the frame on a Marcus Brodil (Dunedin) RBI-double to tie the game.
All six USF runs in the third inning were scored with two outs. Joaquin Monque (Weston) gave the Bulls a 3-1 lead with a two-run double, Ben Rozenblum (Coral Springs) added an RBI-single and Stewart Puckett (DeLeon Springs) unloaded on a three-run homer to give the Bulls a 7-1 advantage.
Bobby Boser (Wesley Chapel) tacked on a solo home run in the sixth inning.
Notable
- Boser ranks eighth all-time in program history with 31 career home runs. Drew Brutcher (Lakeland) is tied for fourth with 40 career homers.
- Boser has five home runs over his last 10 starts. The junior leads the Bulls with 12 homers this season despite missing 22 games with a hand injury.
- Cebert is 3-0 with a 3.86 ERA (18.2/8 ER) and 15 strikeouts over his last three starts.
- South Florida has posted a team ERA of 3.76 (67.0 IP/28 ER) over the last eight games.
The Bulls and Blazers square off one more time to conclude the regular season in a pivotal rubber match on Saturday, May 18. South Florida will celebrate Senior Day prior to first pitch at 1 p.m.
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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