Drew Brutcher connected on his first home run since April 5th in USF’s 8-3 win on Thursday.
TAMPA (May 19, 2022) – For the past month, the University of South Florida Bulls (27-26, 7-15 AAC) have been missing the thunderous swing of sophomore Drew Brutcher (Lakeland). On Thursday, in his fifth game back from injury, Brutcher blasted a go-ahead home run in the fifth inning against Wichita State (20-33, 8-14 AAC) and the Bulls went on to an 8-3 victory in the first tilt of a three-game series to wrap up the regular season at USF Baseball Stadium.
Despite missing 14 games with a lower body injury, Brutcher still lead South Florida in home runs this season. His 11th longball of the year, a two-out three-run blast, capped a four-run frame as USF overcame a three-run deficit and scored eight unanswered runs against the Shockers.
South Florida hadn’t score more than four runs in its last 11 games before Thursday’s outburst.
Not only did Wichita State lead 3-0 after four innings, but the Shockers were no-hitting the Bulls on the mound until the fifth frame.
Nick Gonzalez (Tampa) led off the bottom of the fifth with a triple and promptly scored on a double by Nelson Rivera (Tao Alto, Puerto Rico). Two quick outs later and the Bulls looked like they would have to settle for just the one run, but Jarrett Eaton (Mobile, Ala.) turned the lineup over to Brutcher with a two-out single.
Rivera added another RBI with a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning and Bobby Boser (Wesley Chapel) tacked on a two-out run-scoring double to stretch the USF lead to 6-3.
Rivera doubled to lead off the eighth and came around on Jackson Mayo’s (St. Johns) ninth home run of the season.
On the mound, Brad Lord (Crawfordville), Joey Volini (Tampa) and Hunter Mink (Palm Harbor) combined for 6.1 IP from the bullpen without allowing an earned run. Lord earned the win in his relief outing while Mink picked up his ninth save of the year.
Notable
- Brutcher’s home run was his first since April 5th.
- Mayo has launched two homers over his last four games.
- The Bulls no-hit the Shockers over the final three innings of play.
- Gonzalez’s .379 batting average in conference games ranks second in the AAC.
Up Next
The Bulls and Shockers continue their weekend series with 9 a.m. games on both Friday and Saturday. The game times have been moved up from their previously scheduled slots due to forecast weather.
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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