One error was all it took.
Florida third baseman Jonathan India botched a tailor-made double play that would’ve ended the seventh inning and kept UF’s 5-3 lead in check.
The Gators might have held on and hoisted their second consecutive Southeastern Conference Tournament trophy.
Instead, Texas A&M scored four runs in the frame and went on to defeat the Gators (47-13) 12-5 to capture the Aggies’ first SEC Tournament Championship in Hoover, Alabama.
“We had a chance to finish the inning there and it didn’t happen,” UF assistant coach Brad Weitzel said. “Sometimes against a good team you only get one shot. That might’ve been it.”
Following India’s blunder, TAMU tied the game on J.B. Moss’ two-run double before Nick Banks cashed in two more by depositing a two-run home run to right-center field to take a 7-5 lead.
The go-ahead homer was déjà vu to Florida.
With the game knotted at 2-2 in the bottom of the third, Banks drilled a solo shot into the trees beyond right field to give the Aggies the lead. The junior finished 3-for-5 with two homers and three RBIs.
The Gators tied the game in the fourth on Nelson Maldonado’s run-scoring single and took the lead two innings later.
Freshman Danny Reyes lined an RBI single up the middle to put Florida ahead 4-3. Then with the bases full, Buddy Reed beat out a potential double play to plate another run.
However, the Aggies (45-14) then scored nine unanswered runs over two frames.
Up 7-5 in the eighth, Texas A&M rallied for five runs, capped by J.B. Moss’ bases-clearing double. Moss, who went 3-for-5, set an SEC championship game record with five RBIs.
The seven-run thumping was partly due to Florida’s piece-it-together pitching approach.
Logan Shore, who UF wanted to keep fresh for regionals next weekend, started the game but tossed just one inning.
Five different pitchers followed Shore, including freshman Michael Byrne, who served up the seventh inning go-ahead homer and took the loss.
Despite this, Weitzel was happy with the right-hander’s performance.
“He battled,” he said. “He didn’t do anything wrong. It just came down to that double play ball and we didn’t make the play.”
The Gators, who will likely be a national seed in the NCAA Tournament, will learn their postseason fate during the NCAA selection show Monday at noon on ESPNU.
A radio broadcast contributed to this report.
Contact Patrick Pinak at ppinak@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @Pinakk12
Florida's Deacon Liput dives for the ball and misses it in the seventh inning against Texas A&M in a Southeastern Conference NCAA college baseball championship game at the Hoover Met, Sunday, May 29, 2016, in Hoover, Ala. Texas A&M won 12-5. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
