No. 23 Kentucky’s 10-Game Winning Streak Snapped
No. 23 Kentucky saw its 10-game winning streak snapped on Saturday afternoon as Wofford used timely hitting and multiple walks to ride an eight-run ninth inning to a 12-5 series-evening victory at Kentucky Proud Park.
The teams meet Sunday afternoon in a rubber game.
The Wildcats (11-2) and Terriers (12-3) played to a 4-4 stalemate after eight innings during which UK missed several opportunities to take control of the game. A misplayed bunt to open the Wofford ninth cracked the door and a program that has won at least 40 games each of the past three seasons took full advantage.
In a series between two teams that play eerily similar styles, it was Wofford that came up with the timely hits on Saturday. The Terriers went 6-for-15 with runners in scoring position while the Cats were just 2-for-12, one of which came with two outs in the ninth inning.
Wofford took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third to end UK pitcher Ben Cleaver’s 15.1 inning scoreless stretch before Tyler Bell blasted a three-run homer in the Cats’ half of the inning. Wofford took a 4-3 lead with single runs in the fifth and sixth but UK tied it with Bell’s bases loaded sacrifice fly in the seventh that narrowly missed being a grand slam.
The Cats then had a chance to take the lead in the eight but pinch runner Kyuss Gargett was tagged out trying to score on Devin Burkes’s squeeze bunt attempt, giving Wofford the momentum it carried into the ninth.
NOTES
- Kentucky is 11-2 on the season and had a streak of 10 straight wins snapped.
- UK has 97 wins since the beginning of the 2023 season (97-39).
- UK was hit by three pitches and now has been hit 16 times in the last four games.
- UK stole seven bases.
- UK Coach Nick Mingione is in his ninth season at the helm and now owns a 273-168 career record.
- Mingione now is the second-winningest coach in school history.
- UK is 106-38 in the month of March under Coach Mingione.
- Mingione is 162-47 in non-conference games overall and 142-21 vs. non-Power Four opponents.
- Mingione now is 2-1 vs. Wofford.
- Senior OF Shaun Montoya went 4-for-5 with two runs and two steals.
- Freshman IF Tyler Bell went 2-for-4 with two runs, four RBI, a home run, a steal and a SAC fly.
ON DECK
Kentucky hosts Wofford in the final game of the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. It will be streamed on SECN+ and radio will be carried by the UK Sports Network.
