Rich Wallace Believes UCF Was in Position To Host Regional

Coach Rich Wallace believes the UCF Knights could've hosted a regional tournament, but a couple of key losses in conference play prevented them from hosting one.

The Knights finished with a 19-11 Big 12 record, tied for third with the Arizona State Sun Devils. The Kansas Jayhawks led the conference with a 22-8 record, and the West Virginia Mountaineers trailed with a 21-9 record.

West Virginia and Kansas hosted regionals, and home-field advantage played in their favor. Both Big 12 teams advanced to the Super Regionals, and the Mountaineers punched a ticket to the program's first-ever College World Series. 

UCF lost crucial conference games that affected its standing at the end of the season. The team got swept in the Kansas series, lost the Cincinnati and Arizona State series 2-1.

Wallace believes the Knights could have hosted a regional, saying two or three wins would change the discussion. The sentiment isn't misguided, as two more wins could've helped UCF host a regional.

"I'd love to go back and play this year with a majority of our pitchers being healthy cause you're right there," Wallace told reporters last Friday. "I think we're right there knocking on the doorstep of that where the RPI was, where the strength of schedule was, where we were in the league."

Conference wins are important, as they decide who hosts a regional, but Wallace also highlighted that the facilities need to be on par. UCF is making an effort to expand its baseball facilities to achieve that goal.

Wallace said a player development facility should be done by August. He said there is a new weight room and pitching lab, which significantly benefits the Knights.

The weight room is large enough to contain the entire team without splitting into smaller groups. UCF pitchers will have a safe house to pitch with the pitching lab, especially when the weather is risky.

UCF dealt with multiple weather delays during the NCAA Auburn Regional, which put the pitchers under strain. The weather delays turned one game into multiple phases.

"I felt like we basically played two double headers or almost three double headers with how long we were at the field and stopping and starting, but we only played three single games," Wallace said.

The Knights overcame weather delays in their 9-3 victory over the NC State Wolfpack in the regional opener. It looked like they weathered the storm when they faced the Auburn Tigers in an elimination game.

UCF started hot, recording two runs before Auburn tied the game. The Tigers' offense shredded through the Knights' defense and eliminated them from Super Regional contention.

Now, Wallace and his coaching staff are active in the transfer portal to add and replace departing players.

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