Knights have fought their way back to winning ways after trashing…

In the first game of the series, Iowa State won decisively in five innings, but in the second game, UCF fought back and equalized the series by beating Iowa State 12-3 in six innings. UCF’s batting performance improved significantly from the previous day, with 13 hits, including eight extra-base hits. Multiple UCF players contributed with multiple hits and RBIs.

Alesia Ranches was the standout performer for Iowa State, hitting a home run for the second consecutive game. Despite a strong performance in a previous game, Iowa State’s pitcher Jaiden Ralston struggled against UCF’s offense, giving up six runs. UCF’s Shannon Doherty led the game with three hits and three RBIs, while Jada Cody made key defensive plays at third base and contributed offensively as well. Kaitlyn Felton earned the win for UCF, pitching five innings with three strikeouts, before Katelyn Cochran closed out the game with two strikeouts.

The game started with a scoreless first inning for both teams. UCF took the lead in the second inning when Chloe Evans hit a leadoff double and later scored on a Jasmine Williams sacrifice fly. In the third inning, UCF added two more runs, one driven in by Williams with a double and another due to a Cyclone error. Over the next four innings, UCF scored three more runs, bringing their total to 12 by the end of the game.

Iowa State scored their first run in the fourth inning with a solo home run by Ashley Minor. In the fifth inning, trailing 9-1 and with two outs, Alesia Ranches hit a two-run homer, cutting UCF’s lead to six runs and preventing a run rule victory. However, UCF sealed the win with another three-run inning in the sixth, enforcing the run rule and tying the series at one game each heading into Sunday.