On a 2-2 count in the top of the fourth inning, Florida redshirt junior Kinsey Goelz took Mississippi State right-hander Annie Willis yard over the left-center-field wall for her first career home run and the lone run of the night in Starkville, Mississippi.
The solo shot lifted No. 5 Florida to its first road conference win this season as Goelz knocked off her former team. The Mississippi State transfer spent two years — one of which she redshirted — in Starkville before coming to Gainesville following the 2019 season.
Florida right-hander Elizabeth Hightower hurled her fifth complete game and third shutout this season en route to a narrow 1-0 victory. The junior becomes just the sixth pitcher in the SEC to reach nine wins already.
The pitchers’ duel began with three scoreless innings in which half of the outs recorded were strikeouts. A pair of Florida singles and a walk loaded the bases in the top of the first with no outs, but Willis escaped the jam. The Bulldogs got back-to-back force outs at home plate before Willis struck out Florida designated player Emily Wilkie, leaving three baserunners stranded.
After Goelz’s solo shot in the fourth, neither team advanced a baserunner into scoring position across the last three innings. In the top of the seventh, the Bulldogs made a pitching change before Florida center fielder Cheyenne Lindsey led off with a bunt single. Lindsey, who leads the team with eight steals, tried for second base but got caught for the first time this season. Back-to-back strikeouts ended Florida’s night at the plate and any hopes of adding an insurance run, but Hightower delivered one more solid frame to seal the deal.
Final (R/H/E)
No. 5 Florida: 1 / 7 / 0
Mississippi State: 0 / 6 / 0
Pitching Decision
Win: Hightower (9-0)
Loss: Willis (7-1)
Individual Stats (season totals)
Hightower: 7 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K (0.79 ERA/0.66 WHIP)
Willis: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K
Adams: 1-4 (.431/.519/.646)
Lindaman: 2-4 (.328/.466/.517)
Echols: 2-4, 1 BB (.426/.493/.787)
K. Goelz: 1-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 HR (1) (.300/.300/.600)
Lindsey: 1-2, 1 BB (.390/.439/.593)
SEC Road Series
Game two of the series is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday as the Gators will look to clinch their second straight conference series to open SEC play.
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