ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF baseball team has announced the schedule for the 2020 campaign Wednesday morning. The Knights 2020 slate is highlighted by 35 games at John Euliano Park and plays seven total NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago.
Head Coach Greg Lovelady returns for his fourth season with the Knights, (after becoming the fastest coach to 100 wins in program history). Lovelady’s staff features returning assistants Nick Otte (2nd season) and Ted Tom (3rd season), along with first-year assistant Barrett Serrato.
The UCF baseball team finished the 2019 campaign with a 36-22 overall record and a 23-12 record in American Athletic Conference play and making it to the semi-final round of The American Championship.
The Black and Gold will look to replace 10 seniors and three players taken in the Major League Baseball Draft in June. The coaching staff brought in a 20-man recruiting class at the start of the year, featuring seven pitchers and 13 position players.
Schedule Facts
19 games against 2019 NCAA Regional teams
9 games against 2019 NCAA Super Regional teams (Florida State, Auburn, East Carolina)
6 games against 2019 College World Series teams (Florida State, Auburn)
3 games against the RPI Top-10
8 games against the RPI Top-25
18 games against the RPI Top-50
29 games against the RPI Top-100
12 home games in The American
Notable Matchups at John Euliano Park
Miami, March 11 & May 6
After taking a trip to Coral Gables a season ago, the Knights will welcome the Miami Hurricanes to John Euliano Park on March 11 in the heart of an 18-game homestand that stretches from Feb. 28-Mar. 22. UCF will make the return trip to Miami on May 6. When UCF and the Hurricanes played a single game in 2019 where the Knights captured an 8-7 victory on the road. Miami continued to a 39-18 overall record and advanced to the Starkville Regional Finals.
Florida State, March 17-18
The Knights will welcome in-state foe Florida State to continue a series that began in 1985. The Seminoles are coming off of a 2019 season that saw them finish (Insert ranking) after a College World Series appearance. FSU and the Knights have faced off 42 times with the Seminoles owning a 35-7 edge, with the Black and Gold winning the most recent contest 9-7 in Tallahassee.
East Carolina, March 20-22
Kicking off American Athletic Conference play, the UCF baseball team will welcome ECU to John Euliano Park for three games. A season ago, the Knights traveled to Greenville and dropped the series three games to none as the Pirates earned a national seed to host a regional in the NCAA tournament and finished the season at 47-18. East Carolina saw their season come to an end thanks to a sweep at the Louisville Super Regional.
Cincinnati, May 14-16
The Knights will end the regular season as they welcome the Bearcats to John Euliano Park. UCF traveled to Cincinnati last season as the Bearcats edged the Black and Gold, taking two of the three games during the regular season. Cincinnati also defeated UCF in an elimination game in the 2019 American Athletic Conference Championship tournament. UCF currently holds a 12-8 lead in the all-time series that dates back to March 2014.
