Friday, February 18
Tampa, Fla.
2:00 PM
University of Louisville
1-0
8
vs
7
Charlotte
0-1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Charlotte
0
0
0
3
0
0
2
0
2
7
9
4
Louisville
2
2
1
0
0
1
1
1
X
8
11
1
Photo by: Michael McCammon | 247 Sports
Cardinals Open with 8-7 Victory over Charlotte
February 18, 2022 | Baseball
Five Cardinals turned in multi-hit games in the season opener.
TAMPA, Fla. – The University of Louisville baseball team opened up the 2022 campaign with an 8-7 victory over Charlotte on Friday afternoon at the University of South Florida.
Louisville (1-0) scored in each of the first three innings and led throughout on its way to a victory over the reigning Conference USA regular season champion.
Christian Knapczyk led the Cardinals with a 3-for-5 showing at the plate, matching his career high with the trio of hits. Ben Metzinger, Cameron Masterman, Logan Beard and Ben Bianco each registered a pair of hits as part of the 11-hit attack.
Ryan Hawks (1-0) earned the first win of his career, going 2.2 innings and allowing two runs on just one hit. Michael Prosecky recorded the final six outs of the game for his first career save.
The Cardinals got off to a great start on Friday, with Tate Kuehner putting a zero on the board in the top of the first. Knapczyk then led the bottom half off with a single before Ben Metzinger deposited a 1-1 fastball well over the left field wall to make it a 2-0 game.
The home run made it three consecutive games with a long ball for Metzinger, who homered in the final two games of the 2021 season at the ACC Championship in Charlotte. The senior has four home runs in his last three games played.
Louisville was back at it in the second, getting consecutive singles from Masterman and Beard before Isaac Humphrey bunted both runners up. Bianco then delivered with a line drive into left-centerfield that plated a pair and doubled the lead. Masterman added a run-scoring single one inning later and the Cardinals held a 5-0 advantage after three.
Charlotte (0-1) cut into the margin with three runs in the fourth, but Hawks entered with the tying runs on base and extinguished the rally.
The Cardinals used poor defense from the 49ers to add to their lead in the sixth. Beard laced a single to left and moved all the way to third after the throw from the left fielder got away. In an attempt to get Beard at third, Charlotte made another poor throw to allow him to scamper home.
A two-run home run in the seventh cut Louisville's lead to just one, but the Cardinals responded with single runs in the seventh and eighth to take a three-run edge into the ninth.
Prosecky struck out three straight in the eighth before giving up a one-out, two-run homer in the ninth. The southpaw retired the final two batters though to secure the victory.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE BASEBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram at @LouisvilleBSB.
Louisville (1-0) scored in each of the first three innings and led throughout on its way to a victory over the reigning Conference USA regular season champion.
Christian Knapczyk led the Cardinals with a 3-for-5 showing at the plate, matching his career high with the trio of hits. Ben Metzinger, Cameron Masterman, Logan Beard and Ben Bianco each registered a pair of hits as part of the 11-hit attack.
Ryan Hawks (1-0) earned the first win of his career, going 2.2 innings and allowing two runs on just one hit. Michael Prosecky recorded the final six outs of the game for his first career save.
The Cardinals got off to a great start on Friday, with Tate Kuehner putting a zero on the board in the top of the first. Knapczyk then led the bottom half off with a single before Ben Metzinger deposited a 1-1 fastball well over the left field wall to make it a 2-0 game.
The home run made it three consecutive games with a long ball for Metzinger, who homered in the final two games of the 2021 season at the ACC Championship in Charlotte. The senior has four home runs in his last three games played.
Louisville was back at it in the second, getting consecutive singles from Masterman and Beard before Isaac Humphrey bunted both runners up. Bianco then delivered with a line drive into left-centerfield that plated a pair and doubled the lead. Masterman added a run-scoring single one inning later and the Cardinals held a 5-0 advantage after three.
Charlotte (0-1) cut into the margin with three runs in the fourth, but Hawks entered with the tying runs on base and extinguished the rally.
The Cardinals used poor defense from the 49ers to add to their lead in the sixth. Beard laced a single to left and moved all the way to third after the throw from the left fielder got away. In an attempt to get Beard at third, Charlotte made another poor throw to allow him to scamper home.
A two-run home run in the seventh cut Louisville's lead to just one, but the Cardinals responded with single runs in the seventh and eighth to take a three-run edge into the ninth.
Prosecky struck out three straight in the eighth before giving up a one-out, two-run homer in the ninth. The southpaw retired the final two batters though to secure the victory.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE BASEBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram at @LouisvilleBSB.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hawks, Ryan (1-0)
L: Martinez (0-1)
S: Prosecky, Michael (1)
Batting:
2B: Fisher 1
HR: Knight 1 ; Fisher 1
RBI: Furman 2 ; Knight 2 ; Fisher 2 ; Jackson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McCabe 1 ; Knight 2 ; Cunningham 1 ; Fisher 2 ; Jackson 1
HBP: Butcher 1
Batting:
HR: Metzinger, Ben 1
RBI: Metzinger, Ben 3 ; Rushing, Dalton 1 ; Masterman, Cameron 1 ; Bianco, Ben 2
SH: Humphrey, Isaac 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Knapczyk, Christian 2 ; Metzinger, Ben 1 ; Usher, Levi 1 ; Masterman, Cameron 1 ; Beard, Logan 2 ; Bianco, Ben 1
HBP: Rushing, Dalton 1 ; Benson, JT 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
5
R
2
H
3
RBI
0
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Baseball
C/1B
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballC/INF
/ Baseball
LHP
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