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After being swept by No. 7 Arkansas last weekend, No. 9 Florida bounced back at home Wednesday with a 5-0 shutout victory over in-state foe Stetson. The Gators improve to 36-12 overall and 18-10 at home this season.
After two scoreless innings, Florida second baseman Skylar Wallace led off the bottom of the third with a walk before the redshirt junior stole her 41st base this year — first in the SEC and third in the nation.
The next batter, right fielder Cheyenne Lindsey, laid down a bunt that led to an errant Stetson throw and allowed Wallace to score from second base. Third baseman Charla Echols extended Florida’s lead after she drove home Lindsey on a first-pitch double down the line.
The Gators tacked on an insurance run in each of the next three innings to take a commanding 5-0 advantage into the top of the seventh.
Florida right-hander Lexie Delbrey started in the circle and was perfect through five innings barring a pair of infield singles and a hit-by-pitch. Junior southpaw Rylee Trlicek came in for relief in the top of the sixth and delivered back-to-back strikeouts to retire the side. In the seventh, senior right-hander Elizabeth Hightower struck out the side to clinch the shutout win.
Final (R/H/E)
Stetson: 0 / 2 / 3
#9 Florida: 5 / 10 / 1
Pitching Decision
Win: Delbrey (11-2)
Loss: Klein (8-8)
Individual Stats
RHP Delbrey: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K
LHP Trlicek: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
RHP Hightower: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
2B Wallace: 0-3, R, RBI, BB, K, SB (41)
RF Lindsey: 2-4, R, K, SB
3B Echols: 2-3, RBI
DP Walsh: 1-2, RBI
C Roe: 1-3
LF Kistler: 1-2, R, HBP
SS K. Goelz: 0-3
1B A. Goelz: 1-2
CF Falby: 2-3, R, SB
Trip to the Bayou
The Gators will head to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, this weekend to take on No. 19 LSU. The series opener is scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m.
Early on in the season, Florida’s schedule was filled with top-25 opponents. The Gators played five ranked opponents before beginning American Conference play, losing all but one match against No. 3 Syracuse.
On Wednesday, Amanda O’Leary’s squad again stepped away from its conference schedule and emerged victorious over another top team.
No. 8 Florida (12-4, 4-0 AAC) defeated No. 22 Jacksonville (11-4, 5-0 SoCon) 12-6 in Gainesville. The Gators’ win streak is now extended to 10 games with the home finale win.
Both teams got out to a solid start before Florida ran away with the match. UF opened up the first five minutes with three goals, two of which belonging to Danielle Pavinelli. Jacksonville responded with to goals of its own before the Gators caught some momentum.
Florida scored nine goals in the first half. Emily Heller led the game with a hat trick. Four Gators scored twice while sophomore Ashley Gonzalez added on a point of her own.
UF’s defense ended up holding Jacksonville to a measly .194 shooting percentage. Goalie Sarah Reznick finished with 11 saves and a 47% save percentage. The redshirt sophomore has recorded a save in 45-straight games, the second longest streak in program history.
“Defensively, we had much more confidence bringing the ball up and out and finding the open players,” O’Leary said.
The Gators rode the momentum to a a victory in the penultimate game of the season.
Up next, Florida has its final game of the regular season against AAC opponent East Carolina. The Pirates are 9-7 and 2-2 in conference.
They came out on top against Cincinnati on April 23. The Gators seem primed for an American Conference tournament runs and have NCAA tournament aspirations, but they will need to remain focused before the postseason arrives.
First draw is set for Saturday at 11 a.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
After one season, Florida soccer head coach Tony Amato has been dismissed from the team. The move comes after multiple players came forward with complaints about Amato and his treatment of the players, as first reported by Fresh Take Florida.
Since athletic director Scott Stricklin hired Amato in May 2021, 17 players have stepped away from the team or entered the transfer portal. Official complaints began as early as October when a signed letter from players and staff was presented to the UAA compliance office. The UAA offered a group therapy session in response. Amato did not attend the session.
“My thorough evaluation of the soccer program is that there is a disconnect between Tony and his athletes,” Stricklin said. “As the issues continued to be brought to my attention, it became apparent that sufficient progress was not being made and Tony was not a fit for the University of Florida.”
Anonymous players told WUFT that Amato made remarks about players’ eating and physical appearance even with knowledge that some players on his roster have struggled with eating disorders. Players at Arizona, where Amato held the head coaching position prior to UF, reported similar events.
With Amato at the helm, the Gators went 4-12-4 this past season, the worst record in program history. Florida will pay Amato’s $1.04 Million base salary through 2027.
The firing comes less than a year after the departure of former women’s basketball coach Cam Newbauer, who was also hired by Stricklin. Players under Newbauer had similar complaints of misconduct in a report from the Alligator. Sticklin has now handled the departure of four head coaches in one year.
“I fully recognize the disruption this causes our athletes and our program,” Stricklin said. “We all wanted this to work, but ultimately it is my responsibility to do what is in the best long-term interest of this program, and thus this decision.”
The Florida Gators welcomed the nation’s No. 1 team, Tennessee, to the newly minted Condron Family Ballpark this weekend. Unfortunately, Florida dropped to 6-12 in SEC play after being swept.
So, let’s recap what happened.
Friday
It was reported (by D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers) Wednesday that Florida ace LHP Hunter Barco would be sidelined indefinitely with elbow soreness. Obviously, the injury left a major void in the rotation. Head coach Kevin O’Sullivan rewarded RHP Ryan Slater with the start.
Tennessee erupted for seven runs in the second inning, basically forcing Slater to eat up as many innings as possible to preserve the bullpen for the rest of the weekend. In total, Slater tossed 4.1 innings before giving way to freshman Anthony Ursitti. Ursitti proved to be a bright spot, tossing a career high 3.2 innings of shutout ball while only allowing one base hit.
Offensively, the Gators managed just three hits off a Vols pitching staff highlighted by Chase Burns, who improved to 7-1 on the season. Additionally, Florida want 1-8 with runners on base and 0-5 with a runner in scoring position.
The result: an 8-2 loss to open the series.
Saturday
The Gators dropped the second game of the series Saturday, 3-0, despite a strong outing from starter Brandon Sproat.
Florida’s offense once again struggled, this time scattering just two hits (2-27, .074 BA) for the duration of the game. The Gators went 1-7 with runners on and 0-3 with a runner in scoring position.
Sproat was cruising through four innings before allowing a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth. Philip Abner and Nick Ficarrotta combined to shut out the Vols over the final three innings, but the offense’s struggles were just too much to overcome.
Sunday
The Gators found a way to drop Sunday’s finale despite entering the ninth inning with a three run (4-1) advantage and one of their most reliable arms on the mound.
The Gators jumped out in front in the first inning when BT Riopelle was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Kendrick Calilao followed with a sacrifice fly that plated Sterlin Thompson and put Florida up 2-0.
In the fourth inning, Jac Caglianone crushed a solo shot to center for his first collegiate homer in his first career start.
Caglianone added to the lead with a sacrifice fly in the sixth that extended the lead to 4-0.
Tennessee got one back in the seventh when Trey Lipscomb scored Drew Gilbert on a groundout to second.
After a solo homer to lead off the ninth, Blake Purnell got to a two-strike count with two outs, before giving up a base hit to Evan Russell. The next pitch saw the game evened up with a two run single by Christian Moore.
Moore smashed a two-run homer in the eleventh that secured the win and the sweep for Tennessee.
On the mound, Brandon Neely pitched the best game of his career, going 7 innings, allowing just one hit (he had a no-no through 6.1 innings) and one run while striking out eight and walking two.
Florida had a chance to win it in the bottom of the ninth but Corey Robinson was stranded at third, where he was placed with one out. For the game, the Gators went 1-14 with runners on and 0-9 with a runner in scoring position.
On Deck
Florida will face Kentucky in SEC play beginning Friday afternoon. The Wildcats are 22-18 overall and 6-12 in league play.
With two games remaining on Florida’s regular season schedule, the Gators already have everything there is to play for before May. Now, Florida can focus on getting in postseason shape as the AAC and NCAA tournaments loom.
No. 10 Florida (11-4, 4-0 AAC) defeated Temple (10-5, 3-1 ACC) 18-7 and clinched an 11th-straight regular season conference title in the process. Barring any changes in the next two meets, UF seems destined to have its way in the AAC semifinals on May 5 with nine consecutive victories and an undefeated conference record.
Danielle Pavinelli tacked on another statement performance to her historic season. The sophomore led the way with five goals in the game. Emerson Cabrera followed suit, earning her second hat-trick of the season.
Six other Gators found the back of the net Saturday which added up to the avalanche of goals over Temple. UF scored eight in the second quarter alone, surpassing the Owls’ game total.
“This was a total team effort today,” head coach Amanda O’Leary said. “We were making things work on the offensive end, our defense came out and played really solid.”
Next up on the slate for UF is Jacksonville University. Although Florida has clinched a regular season title, it would like to keep momentum up through the conference tournament and carry that to the elusive NCAA final four, a mark the Gators have not achieved since 2012. Jacksonville serves as ample prep ranked 22nd in the IWLCA poll.
First draw for Florida’s final home game is Wednesday, April 27 at 6:30 p.m.
Following Friday’s series-opening loss, No. 8 Florida fell to No. 7 Arkansas by a run Saturday before being shut out 2-0 Sunday to cap off its first series sweep loss this season.
The Gators drop to 35-12 overall and 11-10 in conference play — seventh in the SEC.
No. 8 Florida snapped its five-game win streak Friday night following a 9-1 series-opening home loss to No. 7 Arkansas. The Gators drop to 11-8 in conference play — fifth in the SEC — while the first-place Razorbacks improve to 12-4.
Florida right-hander Elizabeth Hightower started and threw four shutout frames before she surrendered an RBI single followed by a 3-run double in the top of the fifth. All four runs were unearned due to a pair of errors to begin the inning.
With one out, sophomore southpaw Haley Pittman entered the circle in relief but yielded a two-out RBI single to put Arkansas up 5-0. An inning later, the Razorbacks added four insurance runs — two of which were unearned following Florida second baseman Sam Roe’s second error of the night — to capture a run-rule lead.
Freshman left fielder Kendra Falby drove in Florida’s lone run in the bottom of the sixth via a single up the middle, but the Gators failed to erase their run-rule deficit as the contest ended an inning short.
Final (R/H/E)
#7 Arkansas: 9 / 7 / 0
#8 Florida: 1 / 4 / 3
Pitching Decision
Win: Delce (12-2)
Loss: Hightower (12-3)
Individual Stats
RHP Hightower: 4.1 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 5 BB, 7 K
LHP Pittman: 1.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 0 K
SS Wallace: 1-3, R, K, SB
LF Falby: 2-3, RBI, SB
3B Echols: 1-2, BB
DP Walsh: 1-4, K
RF Lindsey: 0-3, K
2B Roe: 0-2, 2 K
C Wilkie: 0-2, K
CF Kistler: 0-2, K
1B A. Goelz: 0-2, K
Senior Day Saturday
The Gators and Hogs will meet for game two of the series and Florida’s senior day Saturday afternoon at 2:30 on ESPN2.
After sweeping Ole Miss on the road last weekend, No. 8 Florida prevailed 1-0 over USF Wednesday in Gainesville to claim its fifth consecutive victory. The Gators improve to 35-9 overall and 17-7 at home.
Florida right-hander Elizabeth Hightower started in the circle and went the distance for her sixth time this year. The senior gave up just three hits and a pair of walks en route to picking up her 12th win this season.
USF right-hander Georgina Corrick — who boasts a sub 0.50 ERA and leads the nation with 27 wins — earned the start and allowed only one hit and three walks across six frames.
Florida right fielder Cheyenne Lindsey led off the bottom of the second with a single to break Corrick’s no-hit bid, but the game remained scoreless until the sixth inning.
With one out, Florida shortstop Skylar Wallace drew a walk before she stole her 37th base this season — third in the country — and advanced another 120 feet to home plate to score the go-ahead run.
𝘎𝘈𝘔𝘌 𝘊𝘏𝘈𝘕𝘎𝘌𝘙 & 𝘙𝘌𝘊𝘖𝘙𝘋 𝘉𝘙𝘌𝘈𝘒𝘌𝘙
Wallace scores the game-winning run as she breaks UF’s single-season stole base record previously held by @stewartkels7‼️ #GoGators
In the top of the seventh, Hightower yielded two baserunners but escaped the jam after freshman left fielder Kendra Falby secured a sliding catch in foul territory to end the game.
The Gators will prepare to welcome No. 10 Arkansas this weekend. The Razorbacks lead the SEC with a 11-4 conference record. Friday’s game is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. and will air on ESPNU.
With the No. 1 team in the nation heading to Gainesville for a huge series beginning Friday, Florida could use some good news.
Unfortunately, the Gators experienced another setback as D1Baseball.com’ Kendall Rogers reports team ace Hunter Barco will be shut down indefinitely due to elbow discomfort.
INJURY NEWS: @GatorsBB LHP Hunter Barco, one of the nation’s premier pitchers and No. 7 on our top College #MLBDraft prospects list, is shut down indefinitely with elbow discomfort. He will continue to be evaluated by doctors. Just terrible news for Barco and the #Gators.
Barco is 5-2 on the season and possesses a 2.50 ERA across nine starts. He lasted just two innings against Vanderbilt Friday in his last appearance.
The Gators have struggled to a 6-9 start in SEC play and have dropped three of its last four series. Florida has not announced who will replace Barco in the weekend rotation.
No. 1 Tennessee will make the trip to Gainesville beginning Friday.
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