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Coming off its first loss in over a year, No. 6 Florida eased its way back into the win column at home Wednesday night with a run-rule victory in six innings over Kennesaw State.

“We played really nice, productive softball,” head coach Tim Walton said after the game.

Junior third baseman Charla Echols hit her fourth and fifth home runs and drove in five runs as Florida defeated the Owls 10-2.

“Today was all by design, . . . other than Natalie [Lugo] giving up that two-run home run,” Walton said.

Despite her blunder in the top of the second inning, the senior right-hander recorded the first 11 outs en route to her third win this season.

“Natalie [Lugo] hasn’t had a whole lot of starts lately, so we really wanted to get her back out there,” Walton said.

…

Florida southpaw Katie Chronister entered the circle in Lugo’s relief and struck out five straight betters before junior right-hander Elizabeth Hightower got the final out. Chronister got her mojo back following a rough outing last Saturday against Florida State.

Center fielder Cheyenne Lindsey, who moved up in the lineup from her usual nine-hole spot to leadoff batter, extended her hit streak to 10 games after she hit a leadoff triple in the bottom of the third. “The middle of our lineup has been so just average, so we’re just trying to stretch that lineup as far as we can go,” Walton said.

Second baseman Hannah Adams drew a hit-by-pitch before Echols cleared the bases with her first dinger of the night to give the Gators a 4-2 lead.

Lindsey stayed hot in the fourth inning as she poked an RBI-single up the middle. “I just take it one at-bat at a time and just stay within myself and try to get something going for the team,” she said. On the next at-bat, Adams drove in catcher Julia Cottrill on a sacrifice fly to center field extend the lead to 6-2.

The Gators left two runners stranded in the bottom of the fifth until a hit parade in the sixth secured the run-rule win. Adams led off with a single and Echols went yard again to make it 8-2. A trio of HBPs allowed right fielder Avery Goelz to hit an RBI-Double and left fielder Jamie Hoover to rope a game-clinching RBI-single.

Final (R-H-E)

Kennesaw State: 2-3-0

No. 6 Florida: 10-10-0

Pitching Decision

Win: Lugo (3-0)

Loss: Bennett (5-6)

Individual Stats

RHP Lugo: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K (1.58/0.97 season ERA/WHIP)

LHP Chronister: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K (1.40/0.56)

CF Lindsey: 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI (12), 1 3B (.467/.490/.711 season slash line)

2B Adams: 1-1, 3 R, 1 RBI (12), 2 HBP, 1 SB (4) (.458/.548/.688)

3B Echols: 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI (21), 2 HR (5), 1 BB (.435/.518/.891)

1B Lindaman: 1-3, 1 RBI (12), 1 BB (.310/.473/.548)

RF A. Goelz: 3-3, 1 R, 1 RBI (4), 1 2B, 1 BB (.317/.378/.439)

LF Hoover: 1-2, 1 RBI (6), 1 HBP (.351/.444/.432)

SEC Opening Weekend

The Gators will prepare for another ranked opponent this weekend as they host No. 9 Kentucky in a three-game series. The Wildcats are 19-0 overall and carry an 8-0 away record.