University of Houston
USF
Homeruns Lift Baseball to Saturday Win
4/25/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
With the win, the Cougars improved their overall record to 28-15 on the year and their league mark to 8-6, while USF fell to 28-15-1 and 9-5 in American play.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
0 -- Houston played an errorless baseball game, its second straight and fourth in the last five contests.
1 -- Kyle Survance homered for the first time this season on the first pitch of the game.
3 -- Houston hit three homeruns in the game for the second time this season.
4 -- Kyle Survance tied his career-best with four hits -- it has now happened four times; first this season.
5 -- Freshman Seth Romero closes it out for his fifth save of the game.
6 -- Kyle Dowdy improves to 6-1 on the year with his sixth win, striking out six.
10 -- For the 10th time this season, Houston hit two or more homeruns in a single game.
12 -- Ian Rice homered and drew two walks to extend his on-base streak to 12 straight games.
33 - Houston has now hit 33 homeruns this season as a team. It only hit 17 in 2014.
Houston rattled off an 11-hit effort, led by three long balls.
Survance (4x5, 3 R, RBI, HR) led all hitters with a four-hit day, scoring three runs and driving in one on his first homerun of the year.
Campbell continued to drive in runs, plating four RBI in the win on two hits, which were both for extra bases -- a homerun and triple. Rice finished 1-for-2 with a run scored, RBI and two walks -- while homering as well.
Junior Josh Vidales (1x5, 2 R, 2 RBI) plated two RBI on a hit and scored two runs, while junior Chris Iriart added two hits to accompany junior Justin Montemayor's base knock.
Junior starter Kyle Dowdy (8.1,14,6,5,2,6) struck out six and went 8.1 innings, allowing five earned runs on 14 hits and two walks to improve to 6-1 on the year.
It took one pitch for Survance to put the Cougars up 1-0 as he belted his first homerun of the season off the video board in right center in the top of the first. USF would double that run total with a pair of runs of its own in the later half following a three-hit inning.
The 2-1 USF lead held until Houston broke open the game and never looked back, scoring five runs on two homeruns, a double, error and walk. Rice opened the frame with a solo homerun -- his second of the season on the first pitch he saw in the third inning to tie the game at 2-2. Freshman Zac Taylor walked and later scored, prior to Survance scoring on a ground ball RBI by Vidales to put Houston ahead 4-2.
With two outs in the inning, Campbell belted his fifth homerun of the season to left field to extend Houston's lead at 6-2.
USF would continue to chip away, scoring a run in the latter half of the third, but Dowdy was able to escape on an inning-ending double play following an infield fly.
Another Bull run came in the fifth on a solo homerun to make it 6-4 Houston.
The Cougars didn't let down, scoring three more to take a 9-4 lead in the bottom of the sixth. The three-run inning was sparked by a two-run triple off the bat of Campbell -- his first of the year after Survance and Vidales kept the inning alive with back-to-back base hits.
USF continued to trim Houston's lead with another run in the eighth after the Bulls loaded the bases and executed a sacrifice fly.
Houston held a 9-5 lead heading into the ninth and Dowdy returned, after keeping USF in check through 8.1 innings. He would be relieved after a on-out single occurred. He would hand the ball to senior Aaron Garza (0.1,2,2,2,0,0), who would surrender two homeruns, which led to three runs -- making it 9-8 Houston with two outs.
Freshman Seth Romero (0.1,0,0,0,0,10) would come in and close it out with a strikeout to earn his fifth save of the year.
USF out hit Houston, 16-11 and the two teams combined for six homeruns.
POSTGAME QUOTES
Head Coach Todd Whitting
On the overall team win today
"Really good offensive day for us. It was nice to see that part of the game show up. I thought Kyle Survance set the tone for us today with that leadoff homerun. Sometimes you just have to outscore your opponent and I felt like we did that today."
On Kyle Dowdy's pitching effort
"Kyle Dowdy didn't have his best stuff today, but he really grinded that win out. I'm really proud of his effort today. I was proud of Seth Romero coming in and slamming the door. Sometimes its hard for a young guy to come and get that last out and he did that with a big strikeout."
On moving into Sunday's game all tied
USF has a good team and tomorrow's game will be a barn-burner. You have two really good teams trying to stay atop the conference standings. I'm excited for tomorrow and to see how it goes."
ON DECK
Houston and USF will wrap up the three game series on Sunday at Noon CT.
You can follow all the action by listening in live at UHCougars.com/baseradio with Jeremy Branham on the call or by following via GAMEDAY CENTRAL at UHCougars.com/gameday.
SINGLE-GAME TICKETS
Single game tickets for the remaining eight home games at Cougar Field can be purchased by clicking here: UHCougars.com/Basetickets.
Along with the online option, fans can purchase tickets by visiting the Athletics Ticket Office at TDECU Stadium Monday through Friday, 10 a.m., to 5:30 p.m. or can call 713-GO-COOGS.
Houston Baseball offers variable pricing on its single-game tickets and group rates.
For the first time ever, the pricing breakdown will be determined whether or not you purchase your single-game tickets online vs. at the gate the day of the game as well as whether the Cougars play on a weekday (Monday-Thursday) or weekend (Friday-Sunday).
| 2015 Houston Baseball Single-Game Ticket Prices | ||||
| Weekday | Weekend | Weekday Walk-Up | Weekend Walk-Up | |
| Reserved 1 | $7 | $8 | $9 | $10 |
| Reserved 2 | $6 | $7 | $8 | $9 |
| GA | $5 | $6 | $7 | $8 |
| 2015 Houston Baseball Group Rates | ||||
| Weekday | Weekend | |||
| 10-24 | $4 | $5 | ||
| 25+ | $3 | $4 | ||
Weekday: Monday-Thursday; Weekend: Friday-Sunday.
As noted in the table, variable pricing occurs. For weekday (Tuesday nights) online purchases, fans can take in a game, ranging from $5-$7 depending on the choice of seating. If you choose to purchase the day of the game as a Weekday Walk-Up, you will pay roughly $2 more than the online price ($7-$9).
Weekend (Friday-Sunday) online pricing will range from $6-$8 per game, while Weekend Walk-Up pricing the day of the game will run a fan anywhere from $8-$10.
GROUP RATES
Group rates are also available (as noted in the table). Weekday (Tuesday) and Weekend (Friday-Sunday) pricing occurs. Groups of 10-24 are set at $4-$5 per person, while groups of 25+ are $3-$4 per person.
HOW TO PURCHASE
To purchase tickets in advance, fans must visit the Athletics Ticket Stadium Office located on the northeast corner of TDECU Stadium, just outside of Gate 1 off Cullen Boulevard. Parking is available in the TDECU Stadium parking garage with the first 30 minutes free of charge. Regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m., to 5:30 p.m. or you can call 713-GO-COOGS.
JOIN THE DUGOUT CLUB
Nationally-ranked Houston Baseball would like to encourage those wishing to support the efforts and success of the baseball student-athletes to consider joining the Dugout Club for as low as $25 a month or $300 annually.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
LEVELS
PINCH HITTER
For a minimum monthly installment of $25 or a minimum one-time gift of $300, supporters can take advantage of the Pinch Hitter level, which will guarantee an invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball team apparel.
DIAMOND
For a minimum monthly installment of $100 or a minimum one-time gift of $1,000, supporters can take advantage of the Diamond level, which will guarantee batting practice passes for two to any home game, invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball apparel.
**Cougar Pride points will be applied accordingly.
For more information on joining the Dugout Club, please contact the Houston Baseball office at (713) 743-9396.
For more information regarding Cougar Pride, please call (713) 743-GOUH.
STAY CONNECTED
Stay up to date with all Houston Baseball news and highlights by following us on Twitter @UHCougarBB or on Facebook at /HoustonCougarBaseball. Fans can also follow head coach Todd Whitting @toddwhitting on Twitter.
