Bay area trio of Joey Volini, Kyle Scrape and Chandler Dorsey played vital roles out of the bullpen on Saturday.
Drew Brutcher (Lakeland) went 4-for-5 on Saturday and former Knight John Montes (Toa Alto, Puerto Rico) delivered the go-ahead runs with a two-out, two-run single in the seventh inning.
Joey Volini (Tampa) picked up his first win of the season in relief and first win overall since May 10, 2022, his true freshman season, as the southpaw missed the entire 2023 campaign due to Tommy John Surgery.
Fellow left-hander Kyle Scrape (Tampa) made his South Florida debut on Friday and was critical in bridging the gap to get to sophomore Chandler Dorsey (Lakeland), who notched his first collegiate save. Scrape, in the seventh inning, and Dorsey, in the ninth, both entered the game from the bullpen with the tying runs on base and only one out and neither surrendered a run.
The Bulls charged out of the gate with three runs in the top of the first inning. Eric Snow (Forsyth, Ga.) was hit by a pitch to begin the game and Brutcher followed with a double. Two batters later, Rafael Betancourt (Deltona) broke the scoring seal with a sacrifice fly. Jackson Mayo (St. John’s) followed with an RBI-triple and later scored to make it a 3-0 affair on a wild pitch.
Jack Cebert (Tampa) took a no decision in his third straight of the season. The right-hander allowed an unearned run in the third inning before UCF tagged him for four runs in the fourth frame. Cebert bounced back with a 1-2-3 fifth inning before turning the ball over to the bullpen.
Notable
- The Bulls swiped a season-high seven stolen bases in the victory. Five different Bulls recorded at least one and Ben Rozenblum (Coral Springs) recorded a career-high three stolen bases.
- Rozenblum went 1-for-1 in the game with a sacrifice fly to tie the game in the seventh inning and was hit by a pitch twice – he has reached base safely in all nine games this season.
- Brutcher’s four hits tie his career high set on March 6, 2022 vs. Brown – he has also reached base safely in all nine games this season. Brutcher has 42 career multi-hit games.
- Dorsey leads the pitching staff with six appearances on the young season and has not allowed a run in five of those outings.
Up Next
The rubber match of the three-game series between the Bulls and Knights is set for 1 p.m. on Sunday, March 3 in Orlando.
Double Play Passes, which include one ticket to every home baseball and softball game, can be purchased now for $99. Group and single game tickets are also on sale and can be purchased here or by calling 1-800-Go-Bulls.
About USF Baseball
The USF Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and is entering its 59th season in 2024 under head coach Billy Mohl (seventh 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 19 have earned Freshman All-America accolades, most recently Eric Snow in 2023. 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.
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