Robert Peña and Drew Brutcher each homered twice on Wednesday.
TAMPA (March 9, 2022) – The University of South Florida (8-5) offense exploded for six home runs on Wednesday afternoon in an 11-8 victory over Boston College (5-6) in the finale of a two-game series at USF Baseball Stadium.
The Bulls and Eagles combined for 45 total runs while splitting the two-game set.
Drew Brutcher (Lakeland) and Roberto Peña (Caracas, Venezuela) each circled the bases twice. Ben Rozenblum (Coral Springs) and Matt Ruiz (Hialeah) both tallied their first home runs of the season. It marked the second two-homer game for both Peña and Brutcher, as the latter accomplished the feat for the first time in his career just three days ago.
The home run derby began in the third inning on a three-run blast by Brutcher to left-center field. Peña made it a 4-0 ballgame with his first homer in the bottom of the fourth to center field.
Boston College answered in a hurry with a five-spot in the top of the fifth inning to claim the lead. The Eagles’ advantage was short-lived however, as Ruiz belted a three-run shot to center field in the bottom of the frame to put USF back in front, 7-5.
Peña led off the sixth with his second longball of the day while Rozenblum and Brutcher connected on back-to-back blasts later in the frame.
Not to be lost in the offensive barrage was a strong starting performance by true freshman Jack Cebert (Tampa) on the mound. In his second start of the year, Cebert allowed three hits and struck out two batters over four scoreless frames.
Hunter Mink (Palm Harbor) pitched two scoreless innings and struck out five batters for his fourth save of the season.
Notable
- Brutcher has six home runs and 16 RBI over his last eight games.
- Rozenblum went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBI on Wednesday.
- Carmine Lane (Lake Placid) went 1-for-4 to extend his career-long hitting streak to 13 games.
Up Next
The Bulls wrap up their current eight-game homestand with a three-game weekend series against Bradley University. First pitch of the series opener is set for 6:30 p.m. on Friday 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.
– #GoBulls –
