ChompTalk.com

On Florida’s senior day, there was much more than honoring the Gator graduates on the line. Florida was also chasing a .500 SEC record, a series win over ranked Alabama and to stay alive in the regional hosting race.

Still, it’s only right that seniors Bobby Boser and Ty Evans shined the brightest on their day.

No. 23 Florida defeated the No. 18 Crimson Tide 9-2 Saturday in the regular season finale. Boser and Evans combined for four hits, four RBIs and a pair of home runs in what could be their final games at Condron Family Ballpark.

“I can’t say enough about this group,” said Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan. “We got contributions from everybody up and down the lineup… and we limited the damage.”

Aidan King got the start on the mound for UF and went right to work. The freshman struck out his first two batters faced before getting the unassisted out at first for a 1-2-3 opening frame.

Boser, who was honored during Florida’s senior day festivities alongside Billy Barlow, Pierce Coppola and Evans, got his special day off to an electric start, turning on the fourth Alabama pitch of the game for a solo home run. Catcher Brody Donay showed him up two outs later with another homer hit even further past the right outfield wall.

“I was hoping to get a little something, maybe a knock or two,” said Boser. “Leading off for our guys on this day, it was real special.”

After the first inning, Florida was out to a 2-0 lead.

In the top half of the second inning, the errors problem Florida’s had all weekend reared its ugly head once again. Blake Cyr, who was moved to second base from left field amidst the injury onslaught the Gators endured Friday, overthrew a double play ball, allowing a runner to score from first.

King tossed his fifth strikeout to limit the damage and keep it a 2-1 Florida lead.

Errors continued to plague the Gators in the third. A pair of errors and a dropped foul out cost King about 15 pitches and forced him to work through what was effectively a 5-out inning. The seniors stayed hot in the bottom frame as Ty Evans cracked a home run shot of his own, making it 3-1 Gators after three.

O’Sullivan chose to make a defensive change in the fourth, swapping Brendan Lawson and Landon Stripling at the corners. It payed off when Cyr made a Jeter throw to first, where Lawson made a great pick to finish the double play and end the frame.

Despite the defensive hiccups, Florida’s offense kept rolling through the Tide. Stripling laid down an RBI double to score Ashton Wilson. Alabama pulled its starting pitcher before it was able to escape the frame. After four innings, the Gators led 4-1.

Florida picked up its eighth error of the weekend in the top fifth, which allowed Alabama to bring in a run on an RBI double. The Tide looked dangerous with loaded bases, but King escaped the jam. The Gators then put together an outpouring of five runs in the bottom frame to lead 9-2 after the fifth inning.

King let up a leadoff double in the seventh, and the runner advanced on a sacrifice fly to end the right-hander’s outing. He received a standing ovation on his way to the dugout as righty Luke McNeillie took over on the bump. He let up a run on another sacrifice fly before closing the frame.

“Obviously I didn’t want to go out,” said King. “But it was good to get the seniors their last win.”

Neither team scored again as the Gators cruised to the finish line and a series win.

Florida heads to the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Alabama, to take on South Carolina in the first round Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. with a regional hosting spot within reach.