Cincinnati 5, USF 4

The South Florida baseball team (11-10, 3-3) got a quality pitching performance Saturday from starter Matt Quevedo, who pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing eight hits and three earned runs.

Four defensive errors, however, and an uninspired offensive performance made the difference, as the Bulls fell 5-4 on the road against the Cincinnati Bearcats (8-9, 2-1) in the last of a three-game series.

Despite the four errors, USF was still alive in the top of the ninth inning.

Left fielder Chris Rey was on first base with nobody out, but Cincinnati closer Jake Gelgein got second baseman Jonathan Koscso to pop up on a sacrifice bunt attempt that Gelgein engineered into a double play by picking Rey off at first.

Right fielder Brian Hobbs – who entered the game in the fifth inning as a pinch hitter – struck out, ending any hope the Bulls had for a comeback.

The Bearcats – who had taken the first part of the doubleheader with a 6-1 win – were aggressive early, scoring three unanswered runs over the second and third innings. Quevedo got into many full-count situations but managed to keep his composure.

USF took advantage of that in the top of the fourth inning, forcing relief for Cincinnati starter Tyler Smith.

He only pitched three innings, allowing four earned runs, walking three and striking out three.

The Bulls were patient and made Smith pitch, which led to loaded bases twice with no outs, and the Bulls came up with some timely hits. The result was the first lead of the game for USF, which seemed to be on the way to scoring more runs against the Bearcats’ bullpen.

Cincinnati’s bullpen, however, was stellar. Two relievers pitched 5 2/3 innings in a one-run game and didn’t allow a single run in the process.

Bearcats reliever Billy Welsh pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings and then handed things over to Gelgein, who closed the game.

The weekend started off well for the Bulls, with a 14-10 win against the then-slumping Bearcats.

Seven USF players had at least one hit in what was USF’s best offensive performance of the season.

Five runs in the second inning ignited by a Joey Angelberger two-run home run started things, and a two-run single by Addison Maruszak made the score 14-7 and helped the Bulls pull away.