ORLANDO, Fla. – Bethune-Cookman Baseball came up short in the second of a two-game non-conference midweek series between the Wildcats and UCF Knights on Tuesday evening, falling short by a count of 5-1 at the UCF Baseball Complex. The Knights took the season's previous meeting, 5-4 in 11 innings on March 21, in Daytona Beach.
 
For the second time in as many meetings between the two Central Florida area powers, Bethune-Cookman (22-18) got on the board first with a run in the top of the second inning.
 
Jordan Stacy picked up his fourth home run of the season for the Wildcats with a one-out knock clear the wall in left. The homer allowed the former Florida State College of Jacksonville product to tie sophomore Danny Rodriguez for the team lead in that department.
 
However, UCF (27-11) would answer with a pair of runs in the home-half of the frame to take the lead – one in which the homestanding Knights would not relinquish.
 
Kyle Marsh tied the game with a run-scoring triple down the line in left to plate Rylan Thomas who was walked to begin the at-bat. The Spruce Creek High alum would come in to score from 90 feet away on the ensuing play with a Bryce Peterson single into shallow left.
 
From there, the Knights would add three additional runs in the bottom of the fourth to secure the 5-1 final margin of victory.
 
Peterson's double down the left field line plated Thomas for his second run of the game, while shortstop Brennan Bozeman scored the Knights designated hitter on the next play courtesy a single to center field. The final run would cross off the end of an Anthony George single into center to score Bozeman, respectfully.
 
The win went to UCF starter Chris Williams, moving him out to 2-3 on the year. He went the minimum five innings on the bump, allowing just the one hit – the home run from Stacy, and striking out two batters. On the flip side of things, BCU senior Donté Lindsay accepted the loss to fall to 1-7 on the season. The Cleveland native worked 3.2 innings in just his third midweek start of the campaign, allowing five runs (three earned) on five hits.
 
On the whole, BCU was able to muster up just two hits against a solid UCF pitching performance. From his second base position on the field, Nate Sterijevski provided the only other hit for the Maroon and Gold on the night.
 
The Wildcats return to Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) competition when traveling to North Carolina Central for a three-game set in Durham, North Carolina. The series begins with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 22, at 1 p.m.
 
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