TAMPA, Fla. (Feb. 18, 2026) – University of South Florida baseball remains undefeated at 2-0 in the all-time series between the Bulls and the Bison of North Dakota State. USF took game two of the two-game series 3-1.
The Bison wasted no time and got on the board in the first inning. Starting pitcher for the Bulls,
Kaden Smith, hit lead-off right fielder Blake Timmons. Shortly after reaching, he stole second. Tyman Long came up to bat with two outs and hit one through the right side, scoring Timmons. North Dakota State would lead 1-0 through the first.
South Florida battled back in the bottom of the fourth, getting started with a two-out walk by
Carson Cabbage.
Jacob Green was next up and doubled to right field, advancing Cabbage to third.
Carter Murphy drew a walk, putting freshman
Jackson Mirza up to bat in his second-ever collegiate at-bat. With a full count and two outs, Mirza singled to short, scoring Cabbage and Green, giving the Bulls a 2-1 lead to end the fourth inning.
In the top of the fifth, NDSU had a runner on first with two outs when a ball was hit towards deep left field by Colten Becker. As it faded further left, the left fielder, Green, continued to track it as far as he could. Green then caught the ball falling over the North Dakota State bullpen wall, ending the half inning.
In the bottom of the eighth,
Eli Thomas had a lead-off single through the right side, and soon advanced to second on a passed ball.
Jake Kulikowski pinch-hit for
Juan Correa and flew out to center field, advancing Thomas to third. Cabbage was then due up, but
Rafael Betancourt pinch-hit for him and grounded out to second base, allowing Thomas to score. South Florida would lead 3-1 at the end of the eighth, and
Landon O'Donnell would get the save in the ninth inning for the Bulls to secure the victory.
Kaden Smith started on the mound for the Bulls, pitching just two innings. He recorded five strikeouts and gave up one run.
Jonah Sarabia replaced Smith in the third and scored two walks while giving up one walk and one hit. Winning pitcher
Nolan Bernard came in to start the fifth inning, pitching a total of three innings, recording three strikeouts and one hit.
Dominic Pontbriant came in and pitched 1.1 innings in the eighth before being replaced during the ninth inning by O'Donnell after giving up two hits. The losing pitcher for North Dakota State was Garett Shupe, his first loss of the season.
Key Stats:
•
Ryan Pruitt is currently on a five-game hitting streak.
•
Jackson Mirza made his first collegiate start, recording one hit and two RBIs.
•
Jonah Sarabia and
Carson Cabbage made their first appearance as Bulls.
• Pruitt and
Eli Thomas both had multi-hit nights.
•
Nolan Bernard earned his second win of the season.
•
Landon O'Donnell recorded his second save of the season.
Up Next:
USF is set to host a three-game series against Georgia Southern this weekend, starting Friday, February 20th at 6:30 pm. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
Tickets:
Tickets to watch Bulls baseball at the USF Baseball Stadium may be purchased by calling 1-800-GoBulls or clicking
HERE.
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About USF Baseball
The South Florida Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and will enter its 60th campaign in 2025. Mitch Hannahs was named South Florida's eighth head coach in program history on June 8, 2024, after compiling 355 wins over 11 seasons at Indiana State. The 2023 ABCA NCAA DI Midwest Region Coach of the Year guided the Sycamores to six conference titles and five NCAA Regionals. The Bulls have made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances and earned their first-ever Super Regional berth in 2021. 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 and 19 Bulls have earned Freshman All-America accolades. USF has had 131 MLB Draft Picks. Former 2018 first-round draft pick, Shane McClanahan, is a two-time MLB All-Star.
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