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CLEARWATER, Fla. - The University of Cincinnati baseball team fell to UCF 7-6 on a 10th-inning walk-off homerun to end its season at the American Athletic Conference Championship in Clearwater, Florida. The Bearcats held a 4-0 lead at the seventh-inning stretch but the Knights pulled back to force extra innings and won the game on a two-out solo homerun by Brooks Morgan.
Sophomore Treg Haberkorn (Leo, Ind./Leo) led the UC offense with three hits and three runs scored while senior Woody Wallace (Lewis Center, Ohio/Olentangy) had a pair of hits and two RBIs in his final game as a Bearcats player.
// Notables
- Freshman reliever A.J. Kullman (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty) (4-3) was charged with the loss after pitching 1.1 innings of one-hit baseball before giving up the homerun to Morgan. UCF's Harrison Hukari (3-3) nabbed the win.
- Sophomore Kyle Mottice (Canal Fulton, Ohio/Jackson) recorded a hit to continue his hot streak. Since April 13, he has only failed to record a hit on three occasions.
- Starting pitcher Andrew Zellner (Farmersville, Ohio/Valley View) tossed 7.0 innings and gave up just two earned runs while striking out three batters.
- The Bearcats were the No. 4 seed in the tournament while UCF was the No. 8 seed.
// Key Innings
Bottom of the Second
A fielding error and a single put two runners on and a wild pitch moved them both into scoring position with just one out. A walk loaded the bases but the defense showed its strength with a 6-4-3 double play that sophomore first baseman Ryan Noda (Volo, Ill./Grant) stretched to dig out of the dirt to leave three UCF runners on base and end the scoring threat.
Top of the Third
Back-to-back singles by sophomore Manny Rodriguez (Brooklyn, N.Y./Calvert Hall) and freshman Cole Murphy (Cincinnati Ohio/Walnut Hills) put runners on the corners before an error placed Murphy on second base. Mottice then lined a hit into center field to give the Bearcats a 1-0 lead. Redshirt sophomore Connor McVey (Mason, Ohio/Mason) was hit by a pitch to load the bases but Cincinnati was unable to score any additional runs in the inning, hitting into a fielder's choice and striking out for the final two outs.
Top of the Fifth
With Haberkorn at third base and freshman A.J. Bumpass (Rougemont, N.C./Northern) at second, Wallace stepped to the plate with 2 outs and a 1-0 lead. The senior singled through the left side to bring home both UC runners and increase the Bearcats' lead to 3-0.
Bottom of the Seventh
UCF tied the score at 4-4 in the seventh inning. With one out and a runner on first, three straight singles scored a run before a throwing error brought home two more to cut the UC lead to 4-3. With a runner on second base, a double down the right field line by Brennan Bozeman tied the game at 4-4 before a flyout and a lineout finally ended the damage for UC.
Top of the Eighth
Cincinnati immediately responded in the eighth to go back ahead 5-4. Murphy reached on an error and Mottice was walked before freshman Vince Augustine (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley) entered to pinch run for Murphy at second base. A well-executed sacrifice bunt by Haberkorn moved both Augustine and Mottice into scoring position and McVey was intentionally walked to load the bases. With two outs, Thompson hit a sacrifice fly to the right fielder to bring home Augustine and regain the lead for the Bearcats.
Bottom of the Ninth
A leadoff double by Austin Griffin and a flyout put a runner on third before a single by Luke Hamblin re-tied the game at 5-5.
Top of the 10th
The Bearcats once again went ahead in the 10th when a single by Bumpass scored Haberkorn for a 6-5 advantage.
Bottom of the 11th
The Knights got even with the Bearcats with a leadoff triple and a sacrifice fly for a 6-6 score. Then with two outs, Morgan launched his solo shot to left field to win the game for UCF.
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