SpaceX rocket launch stuns during UCF Knights baseball game in Orlando
What could top gorgeous Florida spring weather during a baseball game on a Friday night?
SpaceX.
During a baseball game with the University of Central Florida Knights and the Oklahoma State Cowboys on Friday, March 15, players and people in the stands got to see a rare sight: A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted off from Kennedy Space Center. While the game was exciting for the Knights (sorry, Cowboys) with a final score of 13-2, the rocket launch was dare we say picture-perfect, with a lot of attention on social media.
UCF's Facebook account for its baseball team posted a video on Facebook Watch with the caption: "Only at SpaceU can you strikeout a batter while a rocket is launching behind you."
Even the two baseball announcers got excited. Here's a transcript of their exchange as footage switches from the pitcher to the sky:
"And there's the rocket launch coming up here ... in right field. Pitches a strike. And there it goes. Beyond right field."
"I mean, you get a ball game, and then you get a rocket launch. Look at that! That's pretty cool."
"(replay and the original announcer's voice) The O-2 pitch. Swing and a miss. He struck him out. It's a rocket launch and a 1-2-3 inning for the UCF Knights as we blaze into the sky, a 12-2, Knight lead, coming up to the bottom of the eighth. ... You got a ball game, and you got a rocket launch at John Uliano Park tonight and Cater cameramen all the way up deep into the sky doing a phenomenal job to give us that incredible footage of the rocket launch from Kennedy Space Center on the coast to the ball park."
The other announcer: "You got a pretty good seat for that one."
The rocket could be seen soaring up into the sky with the UCF scoreboard in plain sight.
Mets game also gets a show
New Yorkers may not see many rocket launches which are relatively commonplace in Florida, where the New York Mets were taking part Friday in one of their last spring training games.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 launch could be seen from Clover Park tonight pic.twitter.com/Yr0466EecH
— SNY (@SNYtv) March 16, 2024
UCF Knights baseball game-rocket launch photo, video tweets from Twitter
Just another day at #SPACEU! @UCF_Baseball 🚀🚀 pic.twitter.com/P6Q9hDC9A8
— Terry Mohajir (@TerryMohajirAD) March 16, 2024
Terry Mohajir, tweeted a video from the UCF baseball game and SpaceX rocket launch to his 20,000-plus followers on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. The vice president and director of athletics for UCF posted the "so Florida" message: "Just another day at #SpaceU" tagging UCF baseball's Twitter handle. As of Monday, May 18, a few days after the Friday night launch, the video has had more than 13,000 views on Twitter. For those who aren't familiar, #SpaceU is a reference to UCF and its close location and ties to the space industry and the Space Coast of Florida.
A @UCF_Baseball game and a rocket launch…just another perfect Knight in the Kingdom 🖤💛🚀💛🖤 pic.twitter.com/GiRhwlVNuV
— Lauren (@UCFLauren) March 16, 2024
Extra Booms For UCF Baseball’s Big XII Home Opener, A Rocket Launch, And A Win! Keep Charging On! 🖤⚾️💛 pic.twitter.com/7a5QMi3TCA
— Gianna Aprile (@GCupcake17) March 16, 2024
🚀 Rocket Launch
⚾️ @UCF_Baseball - First Big 12 dub
🏃♀️ @UCF_Track - First home meet in the Big 12
Only at #SpaceU 👀 pic.twitter.com/qvC4xdWoX3— Alex Clough (@AlexClough16) March 16, 2024
Where is UCF?
Fun fact, the University of Central Florida, just east of Orlando with its main entrance off Alafaya Trail, is on a straight line west of Kennedy Space Center. The 50-yard line of the football's FBC Mortgage Stadium lines up with the exact latitude of the historic rocket launch Pad 39A at the Space Center.
Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: UCF baseball announcers stunned by SpaceX rocket launch near Cape Canaveral