UCF baseball beats Bethune-Cookman, ends Wildcats' Power 4 win streak
Bethune-Cookman won three consecutive midweek games against opponents inside the top 70 of the NCAA's RPI. UCF ended that on April 21.
DAYTONA BEACH — Bethune-Cookman nearly pulled off its fourth straight victory against a top-100 team in the NCAA’s RPI, but a single from UCF’s Zak Skinner ended the Wildcats’ hopes in the Knights’ 5-4 triumph on April 21 at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. “That’s a really good team, a well-coached team,” UCF head coach Rich Wallace said. “You can tell they got some really good things going.
We had to earn every bit of that win. ” UCF loaded the bases in the top of the eighth inning following a single from James Hankerson Jr. , an intentional walk on Andrew Williamson and an infield single from John Smith III after B-CU first baseman Jorge Rodriguez was ruled to have stepped off the bag, which otherwise would’ve ended the inning.
With two outs, the bases loaded and a one-run deficit, Skinner stepped up to the plate. After seeing a first-pitch strike, Skinner singled through the gap between Bethune-Cookman’s shortstop and second baseman to score Cayden Gaskin, Hankerson’s pinch runner, from third and Williamson from second. Skinner’s two RBIs gave the Knights a 5-4 lead and proved to be the difference for UCF.
Skinner delivers a clutch go-ahead 2-run single 💥 pic. twitter. com/egaLnuLQr8 — UCF Baseball (@UCF_Baseball) April 22, 2026 “Overall, the defense was really good, the bullpen was good.