Jackson Mayo connected on his first two collegiate home runs Friday night.
TAMPA (March 11, 2022) – True freshman Jackson Mayo (St. Johns) blasted the first two home runs of his collegiate career on Friday night, including a go-ahead three-run shot in the seventh inning, to lift the University of South Florida (9-5) to a 6-3 victory over Bradley University (3-7).
The young outfielder’s first longball was a no-doubter to right field that landed on top of the USF batting cages and gave the Bulls a 2-1 lead in the second inning.
In the fifth frame, teammate Marcus Brodil (Dunedin) followed suit with his first career home run to straight-away center field to make it a 3-1 USF advantage.
After the Bradley Braves tied the game at 3-3 in the sixth inning, Mayo delivered once again, this time to the opposite field, with a three-run homer.
Mayo finished the game 4-for-5 with four RBI and fellow rookie Brodil went 3-for-4 for his second multi-hit game of the season.
On the mound, Nolan Hudi (Safety Harbor) picked up his first win as a Bull with a scoreless relief outing of 1.1 IP. Tanner Mink (Palm Harbor) also logged a scoreless inning of relief with two strikeouts, and Hunter Mink (Palm Harbor) nailed down his fifth save of the year by striking out the side in the ninth inning.
Orion Kerkering (Venice) struck out eight batters over 5.2 IP in his starting effort. The right-hander allowed three runs on six hits in the no decision.
Notable
- Friday was the fourth time this season, and Mayo became the third different Bull to record a two-homer game, joining Drew Brutcher and Roberto Peña, who left the yard twice on Wednesday against Boston College.
- Carmine Lane (Lake Placid) saw his 13-game hitting streak come to an end on Friday night, but recorded a walk and has reached base safely in all 14 games this season.
Up Next
The Bulls continue their three-game weekend series against Bradley on Saturday at 2 p.m. in Tampa.
For tickets, please visit usfbullstix.com or call 1-800-Go-Bulls.
About USF Baseball
The USF Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and is entering its 57th season in 2022. Head coach Billy Mohl is entering his fifth season at the helm. The Bulls have made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, including four since 2015, and earned their first-ever Super Regional berth in 2021. USF was ranked in the Top 25 by five different publications in the final 2021 polls, checking in as high as No. 16. 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, most recently with third baseman David Villar in 2018, and 18 have earned Freshman All-America accolades, most recently Drew Brutcher and Carmine Lane in 2021. Four players were selected in the 2018 MLB Draft, including the program’s fourth first-round selection in pitcher Shane McClanahan, who made his Major League debut with the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2020 World Series and was the Rays’ postseason game one starter in 2021.
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