Box Score
ORLANDO, Fla. – Add another one to the books. The University of North Florida baseball team upset its fourth ranked opponent in its Division I history on Tuesday night with an 8-5 win over No. 19 UCF at Jay Bergman Field.
The win was the third this season for UNF (12-10) over a ranked opponent. The Ospreys defeated No. 23 Mississippi State on Feb. 23 and 24. Sophomore Tucker Pryor (3-1) picked up the win for UNF after allowing just two hits and striking out two in 5.1 innings of relief. It was UCF’s first home loss of the season.
Senior T.J. Gaudy had the game-winning hit in the top of the fifth with a two-run single. Gaudy tied his career-high with three hits and had two RBIs. Sophomore Andrew Hannon finished the game 3-for-5 with two RBIs, two doubles and three runs scored.
After allowing UCF to grab a 5-1 advantage through three innings, the Ospreys exploded at the plate for seven runs in the next three frames.
Senior Andy Warren got it started in the top of the fourth with his RBI single up the middle that drove in Hannon, who led off the inning with a double.
Hannon began the rally in the top of the fourth with an RBI single to left field that allowed sophomore Preston Hale to cross the plate. Later in the inning, UNF was able to load the bases, which allowed the Ospreys to tack on another run when senior Mike P. Smith was hit by a Brian Griggs pitch. Warren capped the scoring with his RBI groundout that drove in Hannon and helped UNF cut the UCF lead to 5-4.
The Ospreys took the lead in the next inning on Gaudy’s two-run single to right center that scored Hannon and Hale. Earlier in the inning, Hannon blasted an RBI double down the left field line that allowed senior Chad Knight to cross the plate.
Pryor was able to shut down the Knights (20-4) in the seventh, eighth and the first out in the ninth before he handed off the torch to junior closer Tyler Stohr. Shortly after early control troubles, Stohr settled down and reared back with his fastball that reached as high as 94 miles per hour to get the final two outs and pick up his fifth save of the season.
Despite struggling at the plate and going 1-for-5, sophomore T.J. Thompson shined in the field, recording a season-high six assists and making the play on the game’s final out. Warren finished with a game-high three RBIs.
UNF has now won four in a row over the Knights and holds an all-time series advantage of 5-3. The team is now on a three-game winning streak.
The Ospreys will return to action this weekend for a three-game series with Atlantic Sun Conference opponent East Tennessee State in Johnson City, Tenn. The series will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday and will conclude with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday. All games will be broadcast live on UNFOspreys.com.