Hurricane Drop Friday’s Series Opener 8-1 to UCF

Friday, April 14

Collins Family Softball Complex

5 PM

Tulsa

16-22, 0

UCF

26-18, 0

UCF

Tulsa

Hurricane Drop Friday’s Series Opener 8-1 to UCF

4/14/2023 10:33:00 PM | Softball

Box Score

Gamebook (PDF)

TULSA, Okla. – The University of Tulsa softball team couldn't get the offense going in an 8-1 loss in the first game of the weekend against UCF at the Collins Family Softball Complex on Friday afternoon.

Tulsa dropped to 16-22, 2-5 in The American while UCF improved to 26-18 and 5-2 in conference play.

Maura Moore (10-9) went 4.2 innings and allowed four runs, three earned, on eight hits with a pair of walks. Riley Grant pitched two innings and gave up one hit and three runs, while Kaiya Luneckas pitched a third of an inning and allowed one run and one hit.

For the Knights, Sarah Willis (10-3) got the win and spun six innings of one-run ball. She allowed five hits, walked one and struck out eight. Angelina DeVoe pitched the seventh and allowed a hit and a walk, striking out two.

Haley Morgan made her return to the lineup after a three-game absence due to an injury in the series opener at South Florida. The center fielder delivered two hits and scored the lone run of the game for the Hurricane. Imani Edwards also had a two-hit game. Kailyn Bearpaw and pinch hitter Gabby Higbee also hit safely for the Hurricane.

HOW IT HAPPENED

It was the Golden Hurricane who took the early lead in this one. Haley Morgan led off with an infield single and then advanced on a groundout. Edwards then hit a bloop single that landed between the center fielder, right fielder and second baseman, the right fielder collected the ball and committed a throwing error trying to get the ball in, allowing Morgan to race around to score and give the Hurricane a 1-0 lead.

Tulsa's lead lasted until the third inning. The Knights singled and then Chloe Evans smashed a two-run home run off the scoreboard in left center to give UCF a 2-1 lead.

In the bottom of the fourth, Tulsa started with back-to-back singles from Bearpaw and Edwards. However, the next three batters struck out, ending the threat. Edwards did steal third in the inning, with the pinch-running Gracie Jarvis advancing to second, but both were stranded.

A one-out solo home run in the fifth widened the gap, making it 3-1 UCF. An infield single and wild pitch moved another runner into scoring position. Then a ground ball to short that would have been the third out go through, bringing in UCF's fourth run of the game.

The Knights tacked on four more runs in the seventh inning to reach the 8-1 score. Three of the runs came with two outs in the inning. UCF only had two hits in the inning, but one was a two-run double. There were also three walks, a wild pitch and a hit batter.

GAME NOTES

» Tulsa was outhit 10-6 in the loss.
» This was the first game of the season where a Hurricane pitcher failed to strikeout a batter.
» UCF pitchers combined to strikeout 10 Hurricane batters.
» UCF's Shannon Doherty set a school record as she was hit by a pitch for the 27th time in her career.
» Neither team hit well with runners in scoring position ... UCF finished 2-for-15 (.133), while Tulsa was 1-for-10 (.100).

Tulsa will have another shot at the Knights on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Hurricane and UCF meet at 2 p.m. at the Collins Family Softball Complex. The game will air on ESPN+ with Bruce Howard on the call. Michelle Montaine will serve as the sideline reporter for the matchup.