Riley Hogan homered in the 7th and produced a walk-off single in the 9th.
TAMPA (Feb. 28, 2021) – The USF Bulls (4-3) faced a six-run deficit heading to the bottom of the seventh inning on Sunday afternoon, but came all the way back for a 9-8 victory over Florida A&M (0-8) on a walk-off single by Riley Hogan (Orlando) to complete a four-game series sweep.
Hogan sparked the Bulls’ rally in the bottom of the seventh with a three-run homer, his third three-run blast in as many days against the Rattlers. The redshirt junior drove in 11 runs over the four-game series.
True freshman Keanu Jacobs-Guishard (Philipsburg, St. Maarten) set the stage for Hogan’s heroics earlier in the ninth frame by launching a game-tying two-run homer – the first of his career.
On the mound, USF showcased eight different pitchers in the series finale. Orion Kerkering (Venice) tossed a scoreless ninth inning and ultimately earned the first win of his collegiate career. Dylan Burns gave the Bulls the longest relief effort of the afternoon, totaling 4.1 IP and striking out a career-high seven batters.
Quotable
Head coach Billy Mohl on the Bulls’ comeback and walkoff: “This team has great energy and they never stopped battling. Once again, we got contributions up and down the lineup, and I’m just really proud of the effort and toughness we showed.”
On the series sweep: “It feels good to bounce back from last weekend by taking care of business at home. We won these games in a variety of ways, and I think being battle-tested early will pay dividends for a lot of our young guys down the road.”
Notable
- Hogan’s three home runs are already a new career high…he batted .400 with a double, three homers and 11 RBI in the series.
- Drew Brutcher (Lakeland) and Matt Ruiz (Hialeah) each extended their hitting streaks to seven in a row to begin their collegiate careers. Ruiz is batting .516 on the season, followed by Brutcher at .462.
- Julio Cortez (Weston) went 5-for-10 with four RBI in the series.
- USF’s pitching staff matched a season high with 12 strikeouts, doing so in each of the final two games vs. FAMU.
Up Next
The Bulls open a three-game series with Stetson University on Friday, March 5. USF will play single games in Deland on Friday and Saturday before returning to Tampa to close the series with Stetson on Sunday.
About USF Baseball
The USF Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and is entering its 56th season in 2021. The Bulls have won 1,628 games entering the 2021 season and made 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, including three since 2015. The Bulls have won four conference tournament titles (3 Sun Belt and 1 Metro) and had 126 all-conference selections. USF baseball players have been recognized with All-America honors 12 times, most recently with third baseman David Villar in 2018. Four players were selected in the 2018 MLB Draft, including the program’s fourth first round selection in pitcher Shane McClanahan, who appeared in the 2020 World Series with the Tampa Bay Rays. The Bulls saw continued success in head coach Billy Mohl’s first season in 2018, reaching 36 wins, advancing to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the first time since 2012, and making the program’s latest NCAA Tournament appearance while also achieving a ranking in multiple polls for the final two months of the season.
– #GoBulls –
