At this point of the season, great teams take advantage of every mistake their opponents make, and UF did just that on Tuesday.
The Gators' first 5 runs of the game were unearned, and No. 13 UF (36-17) cruised to a 7-4 home victory against Jacksonville (33-18) in its final non-conference game of the season.
"Down the stretch that's pretty much what it boils down to," UF coach Kevin O'Sullivan said. "Any time you can force teams into errors, you have to take advantage of that."
The Dolphins scored 2 runs in the second inning to take an early 2-0 lead, but it didn't last long.
After back-to-back singles by Josh Adams and Matt den Dekker to start the bottom of the second, the first costly error of the game was made by Jacksonville's starting pitcher Garrett Dunlap.
Dunlap fielded a sacrifice bunt attempt but threw the ball away, and Adams came into score UF's first run.
"We fell behind 2-0, and we wanted to make sure we got on the board," O'Sullivan said. "Dunlap's decision was right, but he just kind of threw the ball away down the third-base line."
Later in the inning, Teddy Foster drove in den Dekker on a fielder's choice to tie the game at 2.
However, the game was decided by an unlikely source of power.
After another error by Jacksonville in the fourth inning, shortstop Mike Mooney drilled a 3-run home run over the left-field fence, only his second homer of the season. The home run was not only the difference in the game but also a personal milestone for Mooney.
"It's my first ever season with more than one home run, so that's a change," Mooney said. "Even in high school, it was only one (home run)."
Hidden behind the advantageous hitting and Mooney's rare power was the good outing from freshman left-hander Alex Panteliodis (5-5, 4.11 ERA).
He was on a pitch count of 50, but he was able to notch his fifth win of the season anyway after giving up only 2 runs and striking out a career-high six batters in four innings of work. Both runs came in the second inning, but Panteliodis was able to settle down after that.
"It felt good, especially after I gave up that home run," Panteliodis said. "I just went out there and started hitting my spots and just got into a little groove."
O'Sullivan believed that it was the best his freshman has thrown the ball this season.
"His fastball was down and it had life," O'Sullivan said.
After two consecutive wins, the Gators will need those good outings as they head into their final series of the season in position to accomplish all the goals they set for themselves before the season.
A pair of lefties will face off in tonight's opener against Kentucky at McKethan Stadium, as senior Stephen Locke (3-1, 5.08 ERA) will face Wildcats junior James Paxton. The Gators are 3-1 in SEC home series this year and have gone 10-3 at home, with sweeps of Tennessee, Alabama and South Carolina and a 2-1 loss to Mississippi.
UF currently holds a two-game lead over Georgia in the race for the Southeastern Conference East Division crown entering the final three-game set with Kentucky.
"Everything is in front of us," O'Sullivan said. "We control our own destiny."
