UCF Upsets No. 12 Miami Tuesday Night, 6-3
March 23, 2010
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The 12th-ranked University of Miami baseball team lost for the second time in its last three mid-week games with a 6-3 defeat at the hands of UCF Tuesday night at Alex Rodriguez Park.
Miami (14-6) held a 2-1 lead after four innings but UCF (14-8) scored three in the fifth and two more in the eighth to pull away for the three-run win. UM pitchers allowed double-digit hits for just the second time in the Hurricanes’ last 11 games and Miami’s offense missed several key opportunities with runners in scoring position.
Scott Lawson provided most of UM’s offense, going 3-for-4 with a two-run homer. The multi-hit game was Lawson third in UM’s last four contests and the senior first baseman is now nine for his last 16 going back to the start of this past weekend’s series against Duke.
Harold Martinez hit safely for the 11th time in UM’s last 12 games, going 2-for-4.
Brennan Dobbins (2-0) earned the win for the Knights while UM’s Steven Ewing (2-2) suffered the loss in his first career relief appearance. Both starting pitchers went just three innings as UCF’s Johnny Sedlock allowed just two hits while striking out three and UM’s E.J. Encinosa – making his first career start – allowed one run on three hits while striking out seven of the 14 batters he faced.
Ewing struggled in relief of Encinosa, allowing three runs on three hits in 1 2/3 innings before Daniel Miranda, Taylor Wulf, Eric Whaley, Sam Robinson and Travis Miller went the rest of the way for UM. For Miller, it was his first appearance of the season.
Dobbins tossed a scoreless fifth to earn the win. Chase Bradford, who tossed two hitless to close out the game, earned his first save of the season.
Shane Brown, Chris Taladay and Chris Duffy all had two hits for UCF.
Darnell Sweeney gave the Knights an early 1-0 lead with a RBI single to center in the second that scored Austin Johnston from second.
Lawson gave the `Canes a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth, smacking a two-run blast to right after Stephen Perez drew a walk to lead off the inning.
UCF scored three runs in the top of the fifth to regain the lead at 4-2. An infield single by Duffy with runners on second and third with one out in the fifth brought home Ryan Breen to even the game at 2-2. After a walk loaded the bases for the Knights, a fielder’s choice grounder scored Taladay to put UCF back ahead by one before a wild pitch scored the third run of the frame.
Michael Broad led off the bottom of the seventh with a triple to right and after back-to-back strikeouts, DeVoss hit a two-out single up the middle to pull the `Canes to within one but UCF put two more on the board in the eighth to secure the win.
Miami will return to North Carolina for the second straight weekend – this time to face NC State at Doak Field in Raleigh, March 26-28. Game times for the series are set for 6:30 p.m. Friday, 6:30 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.
