Bulls are 7-7 on the season
TAMPA, FL., MARCH 9, 2025 – University of South Florida baseball (7-7; 0-0 AAC) was unable to overcome an early deficit in an 8-5 loss to Villanova (8-6; 0-0 Big East) in the final game of the three-game series. The Bulls won the opening game but failed to capture the series with Villanova winning the last two games.
USF trailed early 1-0 and came back to take a 2-1 lead after three innings. Villanova tied the game in the fourth and broke the game open with a four-run sixth and added two runs in the seventh.
Starter Bryce Archie turned in the longest outing of his career. Archie went five innings, giving up four runs, three earned, on six hits with one walk and four strikeouts. Ryan Pruitt continued his hot hitting with two hits. Pruit had eight hits in the series, getting three in each of the first two games.
Villanova scored in the top of the first for the second straight game. The Wildcats led first in all three games.
The Bulls took the lead in bottom of the third. Leadoff batter Matthew Buffington walked in his first at bat of the season and stole second. He advanced to third on a bunt by Ryan Pruitt. The Wildcats made a pitching change and Bradke Lohry greeted the new pitcher with a single to right to drive in Buffington. Lohry advanced to second on a wild pitch. Sebastion Greico walked. After another pitching change, Rafael Bettancourt singled to right to score Lohry with the go-ahead run.
Villanova answered with a run to tie the game in the top of the fourth and re-gained the lead with four runs in the top of the sixth. A leadoff double to left was followed by a single to right making the score 3-2. Another single put two runners on and the bases were cleared by a three-run homer, extending the lead to 6-2.
After the Wildcats added two runs in the top of the seventh, USF got one run back in the bottom half of the inning. Leadoff hitter Stewart Puckett reached first an error and scored on a double by Marcus Brodil, who has been on base in all 14 of the Bulls games this season. Carlos Jacome was hit by a pitch. A single by Ryan Pruitt loaded the bases with one out. A walk to Sebastian Greico scored Brodil. A flyout to right ended the threat.
Key Stats:
• USF has led at some point in 11 of their 14 games.
• The Bulls stole two bases, bringing their season total to 25.
• USF scored 17 runs in the three-game series.
Notables:
• Ryan Pruitt got two more hits, giving eight in the series. He had three hits in each of the first two games. He leads the team with 19 hits, a .373 avg, and six doubles. He is second on the team with 13 RBI and has reached base in 13 of the Bulls 14 games.
• Sebastian Greico walked four times and drove in a run in the game. He hit his sixth home run on Saturday. He leads the team with six home runs and 20 RBI. Greico has reached base in six of the last seven games. Earlier this season he had a four-game home run streak, tied for the program high.
• Marcus Brodil had a hit and scored a run. He extended his on base streak to 14 straight games. He is the only Bull to reach base in every game this season. He is second on the team with 15 hits.
• Jackson Mayo hit his team-high third triple, his fourth extra base hit in the series. He had two and scored the winning run Friday. and is third on the team with 14 hits.
• Bradke Lohry stole a base, he leads the team and is a perfect 6-of-6 in stolen base attempts this season.
• Matthew Buffington, making his first start of the season, threw out the two runners who attempted to steal. He got on base three times with a double and two walks and scored a run.
Up Next:
The Bulls continue their seven-game homestand when they host Maryland in a three-game series at the USF Baseball Stadium. Fri. March 14 at 6:30 p.m., Sat. March 15 at 2:00 p.m. and Sun. March 16 at 1:00 p.m. The games can be seen on ESPN+ and heard on Bulls Unlimited radio.
Tickets:Tickets to watch Bulls baseball at the USF Baseball Stadium may be purchased by calling 1-800-GoBulls or clicking HERE.
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About USF Baseball
The South Florida Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and will enter its 60th campaign in 2025. Mitch Hannahs was named South Florida’s eighth head coach in program history on June 8, 2024, after compiling 355 wins over 11 seasons at Indiana State. The 2023 ABCA NCAA DI Midwest Region Coach of the Year guided the Sycamores to six conference titles and five NCAA Regionals. The Bulls have made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances and earned their first-ever Super Regional berth in 2021. 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 and 19 Bulls have earned Freshman All-America accolades. USF has had 131 MLB Draft Picks. Former 2018 first-round draft pick, Shane McClanahan, is a two-time MLB All-Star.
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