Daniel Cantu hit a two-run homer for USF on Friday afternoon in a 6-5 loss.
TAMPA (April 29, 2022) – The University of South Florida Bulls (23-18, 4-9 AAC) came close to replicating a ninth inning rally from their series opener a week ago, but fell just short in a 6-5 loss on Friday afternoon to Houston (27-15, 8-5 AAC) in the first tilt of a three-game weekend set at USF Baseball Stadium.
South Florida opened the final frame trailing 6-4 and put the tying runs on base with no outs after singles by Daniel Cantu (Jacksonville) and Nick Gonzalez (Tampa). Bobby Boser (Wesley Chapel) followed with a sacrifice bunt to move both runners into scoring position. The American RBI leader Carmine Lane (Lake Placid) drove in one of those runners on a groundout for the second out of the inning, but the tying run was stranded at third as the Cougars nailed down the final out of the ballgame.
Houston took the first lead of the game, 2-0, with a pair of runs in the top of the second only to see the score evened in the bottom of the inning on a two-run homer by Cantu.
A sacrifice fly by Boser cut the USF deficit to 3-2 in the fifth, but the Cougars stretched their lead to 6-2 with two runs in both the sixth and seventh innings.
Gonzalez connected on his first home run of the season in the bottom of the seventh to make it a two-run game and close the gap for the Bulls heading to the final two innings.
Brad Lord (Crawfordville) struck out a seven-high seven batters over 5.1 IP in his starting effort. Lord allowed four runs on four hits in a solid outing that saw the Cougars take advantage of their scoring opportunities in the second and sixth innings. Lord retired nine straight batters from the second through fourth frames and 12 out of 13 heading into sixth.
Tanner Mink (Palm Harbor) tossed two scoreless innings to close the game on the mound for USF and struck out a pair of batters. Mink hasn’t allowed a run over his last four appearances (8.1 IP).
Notable
- Gonzalez finished the day 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.
- Lane’s 48 RBI this season lead the AAC.
- Prior to the game, head coach Billy Mohl announced that Roberto Pena and Matt Ruiz were no longer with the team.
Up Next
The Bulls and Cougars continue their three-game series on Saturday morning with a 10 a.m. first pitch 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.
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