Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Florida Atlantic
23-6
UCF
22-8
Labsan, No. 22 Owls Upset No. 6 UCF 11-5
4/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
ORLANDO, Fla. - Sophomore Sean Labsan struck out a career-high 10 batters and shut down one of the most powerful offenses in the nation to give the No. 22 Florida Atlantic University baseball team an 11-5 win at No. 6 UCF on Tuesday.
The win marks the second time this season the Owls (23-6) have defeated a top-10 team after FAU knocked off then-No. 8 Miami on Feb. 18.
"It was a really good road win," FAU Head Coach John McCormack said. "Labsan set the tone for us which allowed the offense to get going. I was very proud of the way the guys played."
FAU struck early as leadoff hits by Stephen Kerr and Brett Lashley set up a four-run first inning that included a two-RBI single up the middle by Esteban Puerta.
In the bottom of the frame, Labsan gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, but did not allow a hit to any of the next 17 batters he faced. The sophomore tied his previous career-high of six strikeouts in the third before surpassing the mark with three more in the fourth. He allowed just four hits and one run to a UCF squad that entered the week as the highest-scoring team in Division I with 246 runs on the season.
The Owls scored two more runs in the third as Puerta walked and Christian Dicks singled before the duo came in to score on an error and a wild pitch.
Back-to-back singles by Brendon Sanger and Ricky Santiago and a walk by Dicks set up CJ Chatham's second 3-RBI triple of the week to extend the lead to 9-1. Chatham came into score on an RBI single by Kevin Abraham to put FAU in double-digit scoring for the ninth time this year.
After UCF posted a four-run rally in the seventh, Lashley hit his first career triple to plate Kerr to end the scoring at 11-5.
The FAU pitching staff forced the Knights (22-8) to strand five runners over the final three innings to hold on for the victory.
Sanger went 3-for-4 on the day with two runs and a pair of walks while Dicks scored twice and went 2-for-3 at the plate, also with two walks. Labsan earned his second-consecutive victory while Reily Monkman struck out three in 1.1 innings in relief without allowing a hit.
FAU returns home to host Conference USA foe Marshall in a three-game series starting Friday, April 3 at 6:30 p.m. For ticket information, call 1-866-FAU-OWLS or visit FAUSports.com.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Labsan, Sean (2-0)
L: THOMPSON, Trent (0-3)
Batting:
2B: Sanger, Brendon 1
3B: Lashley, Brett 1 ; Chatham, CJ 1
RBI: Lashley, Brett 1 ; Collins, Roman 1 ; Puerta, Esteban 2 ; Chatham, CJ 3 ; Abraham, Kevin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kerr, Stephen 2 ; Lashley, Brett 1 ; Sanger, Brendon 2 ; Santiago, Ricky 1 ; Collins, Roman 1 ; Puerta, Esteban 1 ; Dicks, Christian 2 ; Chatham, CJ 1
CS: Puerta, Esteban 1
Batting:
2B: WOODS, JoMarcos 1
HR: MOORE, Dylan 1 ; MARSH, Kyle 1 ; SAVINON, Jordan 1
RBI: MOORE, Dylan 1 ; MARSH, Kyle 2 ; WILLIAMS, Tommy 1 ; SAVINON, Jordan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: MOORE, Dylan 1 ; MARSH, Kyle 1 ; BARBER, Erik 1 ; SAVINON, Jordan 1 ; WOODS, JoMarcos 1
SB: WOODS, JoMarcos 1
