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  • BSB: Gators bounce back, blast Bethune-Cookman

    BSB: Gators bounce back, blast Bethune-Cookman

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    Wednesday, Gators baseball took on Bethune-Cookman at Condron Family Ballpark. The Gators were able to bounce back after their rough night at Stetson Tuesday. The Gators won 9-2.

    Fisher Jameson took the mound for the Gators.

    Jameson got things started for the Gators, posting two strikeouts in the first.

    Robertson walked at top of the lineup for the Gators. Caglianone kept the momentum going with a single. Robertson scored on a wild pitch. Ty Evans also walked. Colby Shelton took advantage with a homerun, scoring Caglianone and Evans. Gators up early 4-0.

    Gators defense held strong in the second another strikeout from Jameson. Shelnut also added a good defensive play at third.

    The Gators couldn’t get any offensive momentum in the second.

    Freshman Robert Satin came in to pitch in the top of the third. Jameson’s day ended after 2.2 innings pitched and three strikeouts.

    Shelnut added on to his day with a solo homerun in the bottom of the third, Gators now up 5-0.

    In the fourth, Donay singled to get things started off. Armando Albert was walked, but Bethune-Cookman got a double play to end the inning.

    On the defense side of things, Robert Satin kept Bethune-Cookman off the board with two more strikeouts in the fifth, now up to four strikeouts on the day.

    In the fifth, Heyman singled to centerfield and Shelnut’s bat stayed hot with a RBI double. Gators now up 6-0.

    Reilly Witmer came in two outs in the top of the sixth for Satin. Satin’s day ended after three innings with four strikeouts. Blake Purnell quickly came in for a struggling Witmer to finish the inning.

    Despite getting runners on base, the Gators were unable to get any runs in the sixth.

    In the seventh, Bethune-Cookman had another double play to keep the Gators off the board.

    Purnell was replaced by Alex Philpott in the top of the eight. Purnell ends with one strikeout on the day. Bethune-Cookman got on the board in the top of the eighth, Gators still up 6-2.

    Caglianone got in on the scoring in the eighth with a three run homerun to right field, scoring Wilson and Albert. Gators now up 9-2.

    Philpott closed out the game for the Gators. He finished with two strikeouts through 1.2 innings. Final score Gators win 9-2.

    The Gators travel to Miami this weekend for a weekend series against the Canes. Friday’s game starts at 7 p.m.

  • LAX: Gators Rout Dolphins in Home Opener

    LAX: Gators Rout Dolphins in Home Opener

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Maggi Hall’s nine point day helped lead the Gators past the Jacksonville University Dolphins 21-4. 

    Danielle Pavinelli had four goals in the contest, while also tallying two assists. Hall had three goals and six assists.

    Maggi Waters had a hat-trick of her own as well. Emily Heller, Ashley Gonzalez and Ava Tighe netted two goals, while Gianna Monaco, Paisley Eagan and Josie Hahn collected one. 

    Delaney Radin and Lea Flobeck had goals as well, their first in their collegiate careers.

    The Gators dominated on both sides of the ball, outshooting the Dolphins 26-14 and 16-12 on draw controls. Liz Harrison collected 11 draw controls for the team.

    The defense held strong all game, allowing two goals in three quarters. UCONN transfer Georgia Hoey was in goal for those three quarters and had 9 saves for a .818 save percentage. Elyse Finelle had one save for a .333 percentage in the fourth quarter. 

    Florida will look to take this momentum into the weekend when they head to Tempe to take on the Arizona State Sun Devils on Sunday, March 3rd. The game will begin at 1 p.m. ET and will not be streamed

  • MBB: No. 24 Gators prevail against Missouri, win their 20th game of the season

    MBB: No. 24 Gators prevail against Missouri, win their 20th game of the season

    Photo by Jamie Squire| Getty Images

    The No. 24 Florida Gators (20-8, 10-5) had the quintessential “trap game” at home this Wednesday as they faced the Missouri Tigers (8-20, 0-15).

    At moments, it felt like the Gators might fall right into that trap, and things took a turn for the worst when the team’s leading scorer this season, junior guard Walter Clayton Jr., fouled out of the game with 14 minutes remaining.

    But the Gators faced the adversity head on, relying on steady shooting and a solid defensive effort to eventually prevail 83-74. It was Florida’s ninth win in its last 11.

    For Florida, senior forward Tyrese Samuel was nearly unstoppable. He shot 12-16 from the field, and set career highs in both points with 28 and rebounds with 10.

    Alongside Samuel, senior guard Zion Pullin bounced back from his worst game of the season this past weekend to score 21 points while shooting four of five from beyond the arc.

    Gators sophomore center Micah Handlogten racked up his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Clayton had 13 points when he fouled out of the contest.

    Missouri received strong play from their trio of starting guards, all of whom scored 15 or more points in the contest. Senior guard Sean East II lead the Tigers with 20 points, while senior guard Nick Honor added another 18 points and junior guard Tamar Bates scored 15 points.

    The real differences in the game came from beyond the arc, where the Gators struggled in the first half. However, in the second half, Florida shot five for eight from three. Meanwhile, Missouri struggled to get it going from the three point line, shooting an overall four for 18 from beyond the arc.

    The Gators also out-rebounded the Tigers 38-27. Florida also grabbed 13 offensive rebounds to Missouri’s seven.

    Now sitting with 20 overall wins, as well as 10 conference victories, the Gators will head back on the road to face the No. 18 South Carolina Gamecocks (22-5, 10-4) Saturday at noon.

  • BSB: Gators Can’t Overcome Slow Start vs Stetson

    BSB: Gators Can’t Overcome Slow Start vs Stetson

    Photo by Jay Biggerstaff | Getty Images

    Tuesday, Gators baseball played at Stetson after going 5-0 in their games last week. They did not pick up where they left off last week, falling to Stetson 7-4.

    Freshman Luke McNeillie made his first start for the Gators.

    McNeillie had a shaky start and struggled in the first. Stetson opened up scoring going up 5-0. Slater came in to pitch for the Gators.

    Who else but Caglianone to get things started for the Gators. He had a leadoff RBI single in the third. Heyman followed up with a homerun to get the Gators on the board, still down, 5-2.

    Ty Evans got in on the fun with a two-run homerun of his own, scoring Shelton. Gators now only down one, 5-4.

    The Gators kept up their defense to continue to keep Stetson off the board, along with solid pitching from Slater.

    Grayson Smith took the mound in the fifth for the Gators. He went 1-2-3.

    Neely took over for the Gators in the seventh. The scoring was still quiet on both sides, Stetson still leading 5-4.

    Stetson added two more in the eighth, now up 7-4. The Gators failed to respond offensively.

    Stetson wins the mid-week contest 7-4 after the Gators dug themselves in a hole early that they couldn’t come back from.

    Up next, Gators baseball is back at home to play Bethune-Cookman Wednesday night. Then, they have an away series at Miami starting on Friday at 7 p.m.

  • SB: Gators extinguish Flames in T-Mobile Tournament finale

    SB: Gators extinguish Flames in T-Mobile Tournament finale

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    A windy late-February day blew the No. 14 Gators’ way as they picked up their 15th win this season. Picture-perfect weather proved to be an ideal environment to put out the Flames.

    Coming off her first career no-hitter, Keagan Rothrock started in the circle against UIC. Her first two innings were perfect until a walk clouded the third.

    She swiftly recovered to fend off the Flames until fellow freshman pitcher Ava Brown came in as relief in the top of the fifth.

    “I personally feel like coming out of the bullpen and closing is not really my strong suit suit,” Brown said.

    However, her self doubt wasn’t evident as she retired all five of the batters she faced.

    The duo shut out the Flames and held them to one hit through six innings.

    “One of the things that makes us great is that we feed off of each other,” Brown said.

    Of course, a solid offense helped out its young pitchers today and put eight runs on the board.

    The Gators scored five of their eight runs in the bottom of the first.

    Korbe Otis started Florida off with an RBI single before three other Gators drove in four more runs.

    Flames’ pitching heated up as it held Florida to no runs through the next four innings. The Gators left a total of six runners on base through those four frames.

    The quiet innings were out of character this weekend as the Gators scored in 12 of the 18 innings they played through the prior four games.

    “At the end of the day, driving runs in with two outs and driving runs in with two strikes is the difference between packing your gear up at the end of May and going on to Oklahoma City,” head coach Tim Walton said.

    Brown got in on the offensive action when she hit a sacrifice fly to score Kendra Falby. When Jocelyn Erickson scored on Ariel Kowalewski‘s single, the Gators went up 7-0. On that live play, Brooke Barnard stole home as the Flames stood around watching in confusion.

    The mercy run-rule ended the game, and the Gators won 8-0 in six innings.

    The Gators (15-2) will travel to the West Coast this week for the Judi Garman Classic before SEC play starts in early March against the Alabama Crimson Tide (16-0).

    “It’s gonna get tougher,” Walton said. “It’s gonna get harder, not only physically, but mentally.”

    The first matchup of the West Coast Tournament for the Gators is with Cal State – Fullerton at 8 p.m. in Fullerton, California.

  • BSB: Gators Complete Sweep of Columbia

    BSB: Gators Complete Sweep of Columbia

    Photo by Jay Biggerstaff | Getty Images

    The Florida Gators took on the Columbia Lions in game three of the series on Sunday. The Gators swept the Lions and took the final game of the series by a score of 12-5.

    https://twitter.com/GatorsBB/status/1761824993699336614

    Jac Caglianone took the mound for the Gators for his first start of the season.

    Caglianone got off to a good start in the first, posting two strikeouts.

    Robertson got things started in the bottom of the first with a double to left field. Heyman hit a double down the third base line to score Robertson. Gators take the lead, 1-0. Evans got in on the fun with a RBI double of his own, Gators up 2-0. Shelnut then hit a three-run home run off the first pitch he saw. Gators not letting up, now up 5-0.

    Caglianone went 1-2-3 in the second, posting three more strikeouts.

    Jaylen Guy walked to start the second. Robertson then reached on a fielder’s choice. Caglianone followed up with a RBI single. Gators up 6-0. Heyman got in on the fun with another double. Caglianone and Robertson scored to put the Gators up 8-0.

    Columbia got on the board in the third with a three run home run from Cole Hage. Gators still holding on to the lead, 8-3. Caglianone got things under control with two strikeouts after to finish the third.

    The Gators were unable to get on the board in the third.

    In the top of the fourth, Alex Philpott took the mound for the Gators. Caglianone finished his first start of the season with 56 pitches thrown and seven strikeouts. Philpott went 1-2-3 with three strikeouts in only 10 impressive pitches.

    The Gators bats were quiet in the bottom of the fourth.

    Philpott continued his impressive outing with two more strikeouts. The Gators defense kept the Lions off the board in the fifth.

    Colby Shelton got the Gators back on the board with a solo homerun to right field. Gators up 9-3.

    Philpott added another strikeout in the sixth, his sixth of the day.

    The Lions kept the Gators off the board with a double play in the bottom of the sixth.

    Grayson Smith took the mound for the Gators in the top of the seventh. Philpott’s outstanding outing ends after three innings and six strikeouts.

    In the seventh, Caglianone got things started with a single to left field. Heyman and Shelton both walked, and the bases were loaded. Shelnut also walked, scoring Caglianone. Gators up 10-3. Next up, Thomas also walked and Heyman scored. Gators up 11-3. Garrison added a sacrifice fly to score Shelton, 12-3.

    Smith’s day ended in the eighth. He threw 19 pitches and had two strikeouts. Jacob Gomberg took the mound for his Gators debut.

    Gomberg ended the day in the ninth with two strikeouts 29 pitches thrown in his collegiate debut. Robert Satin came in with the bases loaded and the Lions took advantage, scoring two runs. Gators still up 12-5. Shelnut caught a pop-up in the infield and that was ballgame. Gators win 12-5.

    The Gators will play at Stetson on Tuesday and will be back at home on Wednesday against Bethune-Cookman.

  • BSB: Gators tame Lions for Saturday night win

    BSB: Gators tame Lions for Saturday night win

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    Slow is not normally a word to describe No. 4 Florida (4-1) baseball. But, the Gators’ slow start was overshadowed by a six-run eighth inning to secure the series win over the Columbia Lions (0-2). The final score was 7-3.

    Pristine pitching made up for a lack of hits through the majority of the game.

    Starting pitcher Liam Peterson breezed through the first three innings.

    Dale Thomas hit a solo home run to put an early lead behind Peterson before he ran into trouble in the fourth. The Lions loaded the bases after a pair of walks and a single, but the right-handed freshman stayed level headed.

    With back-to-back strikeouts, Peterson and the Gators went into the fifth inning having given up zero runs.

    Peterson finished with six strikeouts, three walks, two hits and no runs on 74 pitches.

    In his collegiate debut, Luke McNeillie tossed two and two thirds innings of shutout baseball before giving the reigns to veteran Brandon Neely in the seventh.

    As the offense remained quiet, Neely made a statement to secure the final out of the seventh inning and hurled a perfect eighth.

    A flip switched for the Gators when Ty Evans blasted a home run ball out of Condron Family Ballpark to score two.

    Thomas hit his second RBI of the night on a sacrifice fly to score Tyler Shelnut, who had previously reached base on an error. Jac Caglianone tacked on two with an RBI single before the Lions’ pitching walked Evans with the bases loaded to put the Gators up 7-0.

    Caglianone went a perfect 4-4 and tied his single-game hit record.

    In the ninth, Columbia’s Cole Hage hit a three-run home run of his own to put the Lions on the board. However, pitcher Jake Clemente fended off a Columbia rally and secured a Florida win with a two-strikeout ninth inning.

    The Gators and Lions will face off in the final game of the series Sunday morning at 11 a.m. at Condron Family Ballpark in Gainesville.

  • SB: Freshman Olivia Miller hurls second perfect game of season

    SB: Freshman Olivia Miller hurls second perfect game of season

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    Freshman Olivia Miller once again made history on the mound for the Gators Saturday afternoon.

    She became the first player in program history to throw not one but two perfect games in a season.

    In her first perfect game at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium, Miller faced 18 batters through six innings until the Gators enforced the run-rule to end the game in the bottom of the sixth against the Lafayette Leopards.

    Propelling her team to a 8-0 victory, Miller looked collected and calm with short bursts of excitement following the end of each 1-2-3 inning.

    “I was just like, continue to fire it in there, and my defense will back me up,” Miller said postgame.

    She said she did not expect a transition into college play this seamless and credits it all to her coaches.

    She recorded three strikeouts with no walks, hits, runs or errors.

    Right fielder Katie Kistler secured Miller’s perfect bid with an impressive grab to end the top of the sixth inning.

    After that play, “I was actually so grateful; I started tearing up,” Miller said.

    The offense was hot, led by Skylar Wallace with 3 RBI. Reagan Walsh recorded two RBI of her own with three other Gators hitting at least one.

    The Gators finished game one with their 13th win this season.

    Game two resembled batting practice for the Gators as they outscored the Colgate Raiders 21-0.

    Ten Gators hit at least one RBI as they totaled 19 hits against Colgate’s pitching staff.

    Reagan Walsh became the first player since Bailey Castro in 2013 to hit two home runs in a single inning.

    She first went yard on a two-run bomb with Kistler on base. Her next time up, she scored Brooke Barnard and and Baylee Goddard on a three-run home run to left field.

    “Honestly, I was just looking for a pitch to drive,” Walsh said in postgame interviews.

    Castro did the same on April 18, 2013, against Ole Miss.

    Another notable performance included Wallace, who went 2-3 with a home run, triple and 3 RBI.

    Ava Brown had a stellar day on the mound herself. She threw four complete innings of perfect baseball until a Colgate runner reached on a single in the top of the fifth.

    The mercy run-rule ended the game after the top of the fifth.

    Brown finished with two hits, five strikeouts, no walks and no runs.

    The Gators (14-2) conclude their weekend Sunday, the final day of the T-Mobile Tournament, at 11:30 a.m. against UIC at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium in Gainesville.

  • LAX: Gators Top Terrapins in OT Thriller

    LAX: Gators Top Terrapins in OT Thriller

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Emily Heller’s overtime goal secured a 13-12 victory for the Gators over the #5 ranked Maryland Terrapins.

    The Gators found themselves in a 7-2 hole at the half before Paisley Eagan tied the game at 12 with 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

    Eagan led the team with a four goal effort, while Madison Waters had a hat-trick of her own. Gianna Monaco had two goals in the contest. Maggi Hall, Danielle Pavinelli, Josie Hahn and Heller each had one goal apiece.

    The Gators won the middle circle with 15 draw controls to the Terrapins 12. Liz Harrison had ten in the afternoon. 

    Monaco had two assists, while Ashley Gonzalez Sarah Falk and Hall each had one. 

    Head coach Amanda O’Leary made a change in goal in the second quarter, replacing Elyse Finelle for Georgia Hoey. Finelle recorded two saves for a .222 percentage and Hoey had seven saves for a .583 percentage. 

    The Gators home opener will be on Wednesday, February 28 against the Jacksonville University Dolphins. The game is set to begin at 4 p.m. and will air on ESPN+. 

  • MBB: No. 24 Gators cruise to commanding victory over Vanderbilt

    MBB: No. 24 Gators cruise to commanding victory over Vanderbilt

    Photo by Brandon Sumrall | Getty Images

    The No. 24 Florida Gators (19-8, 9-5 SEC) came into the Stephen O. Connell Center Saturday, just days after a heartbreaking road loss to Alabama.

    But Todd Golden’s Gators showed they have the ability to bounce back, as they cruised to a 77-64 victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores (7-20, 2-12 SEC).

    Florida junior guard Will Richard was the hot hand for the Gators, scoring a team-leading 21 points and nailing five three-point shots.

    The Gators as a team hit nine three-pointers compared to Vanderbilt’s five.

    Alongside Richard, Florida junior guard Walter Clayton Jr. was his usual consistent self, adding 19 more points for the Gators. Florida senior forward Tyrese Samuel also was a massive contributor for the Gators, as he also added 15 points.

    Off the Gator bench, freshman forward Alex Condon impressed, scoring eight points and grabbing 9 rebounds. Six of his eight points came from the free throw line, where he accounted for half of the Gators’ makes from the stripe.

    Defensively, the Gators were on their A-game early, limiting Vanderbilt to only 20 first half points, and helping UF head into halftime up 15.

    The second half was more of the same, as the Commodores struggled to get shots to fall consistently. They had a late push, but the Gators held on to their lead to secure the massive win.

    Vanderbilt sophomore forward Ven-Allen Lubin was their leading scorer with 15 points. Two other Commodores scored in double digits, as senior guards Evan Taylor and Ezra Manson both scored 10 in the contest.

    Now the winners of eight of their last 10, the Gators will host the Missouri Tigers (8-19, 0-14 SEC) on Wednesday evening at the O’Connell Center.

    Following that, the Gators have three remaining matchups in the regular season, as they will travel to No. 20 South Carolina, host No. 13 Alabama and face Vanderbilt on the road.