The University of South Florida roughed up Marist baseball last weekend; the Red Foxes dropped all four games in the series by a combined score of 49-6.
Across the four games, the Red Foxes (1-6) went 19-95 (.200) at the plate and used 13 pitchers, all while the Bulls (4-2) batted .395 with a .516 OBP and a 1.93 team ERA.
The series kicked off on Friday afternoon. The Bulls sought their first win of the year after dropping their season opener to UConn, as their next three scheduled games had been canceled or postponed due to inclement weather, followed by a shut-out loss to Indiana State. The Red Foxes aimed to carry some positive momentum after winning the final game of a three-game series at Southern Mississippi.
Freshman outfielder Lewis Rodriguez got things moving for Marist in the first inning from the leadoff spot, picking up a base hit and a stolen base. The next two batters walked, loading the bases and putting Marist in an ideal spot to start the weekend. But sophomore infielder Ethan Conrad grounded into a double play, scoring Rodriguez but dampening the Red Foxes’ momentum.
After that, it was all South Florida.
Junior infielder Bobby Boser tied the game on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first. Sophomore utility player Rafael Betancourt kicked off his record-setting afternoon with an RBI base hit, giving the Bulls the lead, and then scoring on a triple from redshirt senior catcher Ben Rozenblum.
South Florida put up another three runs in the second inning before putting the game out of reach in the fourth. The inning included the Bulls batting around and two pitching changes for Marist. Boser started the proceedings with a two-RBI single before Betancourt launched a homerun to left-center field. Betancourt went 4-4 on the day with seven RBIs, the most for a South Florida player since 2015. The frame ended with the Bulls up 13-2, allowing the 10-run rule to come into play and ending the game after seven innings.
Sophomore pitcher Tyler Hartley (0-2) took the loss for Marist, giving up seven hits and seven earned runs in three innings of work. Redshirt senior pitcher Hunter Mink (1-1) pitched five innings, allowing five hits while striking out five en route to his first win of the season.
Saturday’s doubleheader provided much of the same story: a lot of offense from the Bulls and minimal pushback from the Red Foxes.
South Florida’s pitching was strong from the start; senior Dominick Madonna and freshman Logan Bevis combined for a shutout, allowing four hits and striking out six. Junior outfielder Jackson Mayo led the Bulls offense, going 3-4, including two doubles.
For Marist, only three players registered hits in the early meeting, as sophomore catcher Kyle Pollack went 2-3. Graduate student pitcher Riley Orr got the start and gave up four walks in as many innings. The Red Foxes only struck out two batters during the game.
The game ended in the bottom of the seventh when sophomore infielder Matt Rose hit a two-run double, making it 10-0. Less than an hour later, game two of the Saturday doubleheader began.
The Red Foxes kept the Bulls off the scoreboard in the first inning before surrendering the lead in the second. The 1-0 lead swelled in the third inning when three runs came in via walk or wild pitch, followed by a two-RBI base hit for senior outfielder Drew Brutcher.
Offensively, USF stymied Marist once again, with the Red Foxes registering just four hits in the contest. Junior pitcher Matt Brown struck out four in his five-inning debut for the Bulls. South Florida launched two solo home runs to pad their lead and once again won in the bottom of the seven on the 10-run rule.
Marist hoped to steal some momentum in the series finale, as they did the weekend before. The Bulls’ offense stayed quiet for the first two frames before kicking back into gear, scoring four runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings. Propelled by a two-out triple by Rozenblum that scored two, South Florida went up by eight before Marist scored their first run.
The Red Foxes Sunday starter, sophomore pitcher Will Taylor, showed flashes by recording six strikeouts in three innings of work while also working out of a bases-loaded jam in the first. But Taylor was ultimately undone by untimely walks and wild pitches, a theme for the Marist staff throughout the early portion of the season.
Marist enjoyed some rare offensive success to lead off the seventh as Conrad launched a solo home run, just the second of the year for the team.
For the first time in South Florida’s program history, the Bulls won their fourth consecutive game on the 10-run rule, taking the series finale 12-2.
The Red Foxes haven’t faired well through their first weekends of the season. The pitching staff currently posts a 10.08 ERA over 50 innings, while the offense has struggled to the tune of a .223 BA and .621 OPS.
Next up for Marist is a four-game series at Columbia University starting on Friday, where they will be desperate to stabilize their pitching staff and ignite their offense.
Edited by Max Rosen and Luke Sassa
Photo from Marist Athletics via Stockton Photo
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