Nolan Hudi tossed six shutout innings on Friday before ECU rallied for a 6-5 win against the bullpen.
TAMPA (May 19, 2023) – Nolan Hudi (Safety Harbor) blanked No. 15 ECU (40-15, 17-6 AAC) for six innings on Friday evening before the Pirates got to the University of South Florida (19-36, 7-16 AAC) bullpen and put together their second straight comeback victory, handing the Bulls a 6-5 setback.
For the second straight ballgame, South Florida had ECU on the ropes with a 3-0 lead in hand, but for the second time in as many days, a costly error by the Bulls opened the door for a big Pirate inning.
Trailing 5-2 in the eighth inning, ECU plated four runs for its first lead of the night after a John Montes (Toa Alto, Puerto Rico) error led to a pair of unearned runs.
True freshman Eric Snow (Forsyth, Ga.) connected on his eighth home run of the season to give the Bulls an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Snow also accounted for USF’s second run of the game in the third inning, scoring on a wild pitch, and Jackson Mayo (St. Johns) added a sacrifice fly in the frame to give the Bulls a 3-0 advantage after three.
On the mound, Hudi scattered four hits over six shutout innings with one walk and four strikeouts before ultimately departing and taking a no-decision.
The Pirates got on the board after Hudi’s exit with a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to make it a 3-2 affair, but the Bulls answered right back in the bottom of the inning with two runs to extend their lead to 5-2.
Drew Brutcher (Lakeland) belted his 33rd career home run in the bottom of the seventh and Ben Rozenblum (Coral Springs) added a two-out run-scoring hit before the inning came to an end.
Joaquin Monque (Weston) went 4-for-4 on the night and reached with a leadoff single in the bottom of the ninth, but was ultimately stranded at second base as ECU recorded the final three outs of the ballgame.
Notable
- Brutcher’s 33 home runs rank seventh all-time in USF program history. He is one away from a share of sixth place on the career list.
- Bobby Boser (Wesley Chapel) extended his career-high hitting (13) and on-base streaks (17).
- Monque’s four hits matched a career high.
- All eight of Snow’s home runs this season have come in Tampa.
Up Next
The Bulls and Pirates wrap up their three-game series and regular season play on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. in Tampa.
About USF Baseball
The USF Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and is entering its 58th season in 2023 under head coach Billy Mohl (sixth season). 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 Bulls were selected in the 2022 MLB Draft. Former 2018 first-round selection, Shane McClanahan, became the program’s first-ever MLB All-Star in 2022 and was the starting pitcher for the American League.
– #GoBulls –
