TAMPA - The Wildcats will make the drive down I4 Tuesday as they take on the Bulls of USF for the first time this season. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at USF Baseball Stadium. 

The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ Fans can listen to the hometown radio call free at Youtube.com/CatEyeNetwork



Tuesday, April 1
Opponent: USF (16-9, 5-1 AAC)
Time: 6:00pm
Location: Tampa, FL | USF Baseball Stadium
Watch: https://www.espn.com/search/_/appearance/dark/o/watch/q/south%20florida
Listen: https://www.youtube.com/cateyenetwork
Live Stats: https://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statmonitr.php?gid=sfla



 Joel Core tossed the first no-hitter for Bethune-Cookman baseball since 2017 as the Wildcats split a doubleheader with Southern to take the weekend series, Saturday at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

The Wildcats won game one, 18-1, followed by a 14-4 loss in the second game of the day.

Core's no-no is the first for a B-CU arm since Tyler Norris tossed a nine-inning no-hitter sgainst Savannah State on April 8, 2017. 

GAME ONE - B-CU 18, Southern 1

After Core punched out a pair in the first, Bethune-Cookman scored first as Jorge Gonzalez Febo doubled with two outs and came around to score on a dropped third strike wild pitch that made it 1-0. 

Southern worked its first baserunner of the game with a walk in the second, but nothing came of it.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Wildcats posted their highest-scoring inning of the season with a nine-spot on six hits and a Southern error. Armani Netwon led off the inning with a solo shot before an Irvin Escobar double and three straight walks made it 3-0, B-CU.

The Jaguars turned to the bullpen, recording the first out of the inning on an Andrey Martinez RBI fielder's choice, but the rally did not stop there as Gonzalez Febo made it 5-0 with an infield single. A throwing error allowed the Cats to load up the bases again for Jesus Vanegas, whose RBI single scored two to make it 7-0.

Armani Newton recorded his second RBI of the inning in his second plate appearance of the frame with a single up the middle, followed by an Irvin Escobar sacrifice fly. 

Jeter Polledo capped off the rally with an RBI double to score newton and make it an even 10-0 lead for B-CU.

A B-CU fielding error put the leadoff man on for Southern, who stole second and advanced to third on a groundout. Another groundout brought the runner home to make it a 10-1 game. 

B-CU continued to pour it on in the third, with a single and two walks loading the bases with no outs. A Jorge Rodriguez bases loaded walk scored the first run of the inning before Vanegas scored two more with a two-RBI single. 

RBI doubles from Armani Newton and Irvin Escobar, followed by a Darryl Lee RBI single, made it a 17-1 game in just the third inning. 

B-CU began emptying the bench with defensive changes as Southern struggled through two more quiet innings at the plate. 

The Wildcats finished up their work on the offensive end in the bottom of the fifth as a Jamie Villafane leadoff double turned into B-CU's 18th run as a Michael Rodriguez double play ball brought the run home. 

Southern showed signs of life in the seventh with a leadoff hit-by-pitch and walk, but Core escaped with a fielder's choice and two groundouts to finish out the seven inning no-hitter. 

Core's final line was a scoreless seven innings of no-hit ball with two walks and six strikeouts. 

GAME TWO - SOUTHERN 14, B-CU 4

Southern showed no signs of frustration from game one as the Jaguars launched a two-run homer in the first, blanking the Wildcats in the bottom half of the frame. 

The Wildcats rebounded in the second as Jorge Rodriguez led off the inning with a solo shot - his fifth homer of the year to tie the team lead. 

A walk and an error tied things up at 2-2, with Darryl Lee giving B-CU the lead as Escobar came in to score. A double steal attempt went awry for Southern as the throw to second sailed into center field allowing Sergio River to swipe home to make it 4-2. 

The Jaguars took a run back in the third on a two-out RBI single.

Southern erupted in the fifth for nine runs, with all but one coming with two outs as the Wildcats bullpen cycling through four relief arms before finally escaping the mess now down, 12-4 after six Southern hits and six walks. 

The Jaguars added two more in the sixth with an RBI single and wild pitch. 

B-CU managed only four hits between the third and seventh as they went quietly in run-rule fashion, 14-4. 

Edwin Sanchez took his first loss of the season after 4.2 innings in which he allowed five runs - all earned - on seven hits with two walks and three strikeouts. 



USF is 16-9 on the season and 5-1 to start American Athletic Conference play after a sweep of Tulane last weekend in Tampa. Notable non-conference wins for the Bulls include a two-game sweep of FGCU, and series wins over Iowa and Maryland. A 5-1 conference start is the best for USF since 2015.

Bulls LHP Corey Braun and OF Marcus Brodil swept the American Athletic Conference Pitcher and Player of the Week honors after their respective performances against Tulane.

As a team, the Bulls are batting .279 with 25 homers and 183 strikeouts to 129 walks. Brodil leads the way at the plate, hitting .361 with a homer, followed by former SWAC foe, FAMU transfer Sebastian Greico, who leads the team with 26 RBI. 

On the mound, the Bulls sport a staff ERA of an even 5.00, with 194 strikeouts to 98 walks. 

• Joel Core is just four strikeouts away from career strikeout number 100. 
• The Wildcats sit a game behind Florida A&M for the top spot in the SWAC standings at 7-2. 
• Darryl Lee has reached base safely in 18 straight games, the best mark by any Wildcat this season. He has recorded a hit in six straight. 

Tuesday marks the 86th meeting all-time between B-CU and USF. The Bulls hold a 68-17 advantage in the series, having won nine straight dating back to the Gainesville Regional in 2017. 


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