ORLANDO, Fla. – UCF used two big innings Tuesday night, surging past Bethune-Cookman, 12-7 in non-conference baseball action inside the UCF Baseball Complex in Orlando, Florida.
With both teams entering working on series wins over the weekend, Bethune-Cookman (2-2) looked strong early-on against the homestanding Knights.
After redshirt sophomore shortstop Demetrius Sims (Ann Arbor Mich.) began the game with a standup double, Rakeem Quinn (Port St. Joe, Fla.) plated Sims with a single shot back to the pitcher's mound off starter Andrew Deramo.
B-CU led 1-0 heading to the bottom of the opening frame.
UCF (4-0) quickly countered against B-CU starter Danny Melgarejo (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) in his first start of the year.
The Knights would take the lead on a pair of runs, using Sam Tolleson single through the left side to score designated hitter Matt Diorio, as well as Logan Heisler scoring on a balk from Melgarejo.
The big inning for the Knights came in the third as reliever Donté Lindsay (Cleveland, Ohio) was tagged for five runs – three unearned following a B-CU error, and the Knights would carry a 7-1 lead heading to the fifth inning.
In the fifth, The Wildcats would finally get to UCF starter Deramo, hanging three runs on him to cut inti the lead, 7-4.
Centerfielder Josten Heron (Miami, Fla.) kicked off the inning with a double – one of five (5) on the night for the Wildcats. That was followed by a Sims single, and a sacrifice fly to left from Edney to bring in heron for the first score of the frame for the Maroon and Gold. That would spark a pitching change for the Knights as Drew Faintich would toe the rubber.
Faintich would see just a single batter as he walked Michael Cruz (Aguadilla, Puerto Rico), bringing UCF head coach Terry Rooney to make a change for Juan Pimentel on the bump.
B-CU catcher Clay Middleton (Oviedo, Fla.), playing in front of a hometown crowd, registered two of his team-high three RBI with a two-run scoring single to center, bringing around Cruz and Sims to cut the lead at 7-4.
After UCF added a run in the bottom of the sixth, the Wildcats used a Middleton single through the left side to score Edney, bringing the deficit back to within three runs at 8-5 in favor.
UCF added insurance runs in the eighth with an Austin griffin grand slam off B-CU reliever Clint Clymer (Ormond Beach, Fla.), relieving Zach Olszewski (Bay City, Mich.) with two outs and the bases loaded.
In the ninth, Sims collected his third hit of the night – his second multi-base hit, followed by Edney lifting his first home run of the year over the left field wall to produce the final 12-7 score line.
Melgarejo took the loss, falling to 0-1 on the year in just an inning of work, allowing two runs on three hits and walking two. The win went to Deramo, lifting him to 1-0 for the year with 4.1 innings of work, allowing three earned runs on six hits, four strikeouts and a walk.
The B-CU offense was led by Sims with a 3-for-5 night, scoring three runs and adding three putouts – two by amazing catches in the outfield roaming from his shortstop position. Akevious Williams (Madison, Fla.), Quinn, Edney and Middleton each added two hits apiece.
Bethune-Cookman returns to action Friday, Feb. 26, traveling to Winter Haven, Florida to face UW-Milwaukee at 2 p.m.
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