Jack Cebert struck out three and took a no decision in his first start of the season in a 6-1 loss on Tuesday.
TAMPA (February 21, 2023) – The University of South Florida Bulls (1-3) struck first against No. 7 Florida (4-0), but trailed by a 2-1 score entering the ninth inning before the Gators added some late insurance and held on for a 6-1 win at USF Baseball Stadium in front of an electric crowd of 2, 573 fans.
Marcus Brodil (Dunedin) staked South Florida and starting pitcher Jack Cebert (Tampa) to a 1-0 lead with an RBI-double in the bottom of the first inning.
A Gator leadoff homer in the top of the fourth knotted the score where it remained until Florida tacked on a two-out run-scoring hit in the sixth for a 2-1 lead.
Florida went on to add four more runs in the top of the ninth inning to account for the final score.
Making his first start on the mound this season, Cebert allowed just one run on five hits with three strikeouts and zero walks over 3.2 IP.
“It was disappointing that we didn’t finish the game tonight with a full nine-inning effort,” said head coach Billy Mohl. “I challenged our pitchers before the game as we were going against a really dangerous Florida lineup, and they responded for the most part. I thought Cebert gave us a great outing on the mound and kept the ball down which resulted in a lot of groundballs. If he can build on this performance he has a chance to have a really good year for us.”
Cebert induced six Gator groundouts and had a stretch where he retired seven straight batters from the end of the first frame until surrendering the home run in the fourth inning.
Notable
- Bobby Boser (Wesley Chapel) went 1-for-3 with a HBP to extend his hitting streak to four straight games to begin the season.
- Travis Sankovich (Uniontown, Pa.) went 1-for-3 with a walk and also has a four-game hitting streak to begin the year.
- USF is averaging over 1,700 fans over the first four games of the season.
Up Next
The Bulls and Gators square off again on Wednesday in Gainesville. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m.
About USF Baseball
The USF Baseball program played its first season in 1966 and is entering its 58th season in 2023 under head coach Billy Mohl (sixth 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 18 have earned Freshman All-America accolades, most recently Drew Brutcher and Carmine Lane in 2021. 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.
– #GoBulls –
