Last season in the NCAA Gainesville Regional, Florida eliminated Florida Atlantic 15-0 behind six home runs. On Tuesday, the Gators won by 11 without hitting a single round-tripper.
No. 1 Florida beat FAU 13-2 in a midweek contest played in Jupiter at Roger Dean Stadium, the spring training home of the Florida Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals.
Behind 19 hits — 15 singles and five doubles — the Gators (4-0) pounded the Owls (3-1) all evening, scoring multiple runs in the first, third, fifth and seventh innings.
“One of those nights we played well from the first inning all the way through to the end,” O’Sullivan said. “Had a chance to get a lot of guys in there. It was a great night overall.”
The Gators got on the board early with three first-inning runs, two on two-out knocks from Brian Johnson and Mike Zunino.
UF plated three more runs in the third inning. After a sacrifice fly by Josh Adams, Daniel Pigott doubled over the center fielder’s head to bring in two more runs.
Pigott and fellow outfielder Preston Tucker led the offensive onslaught for the Gators as both went 4 for 5 with two RBIs.
After not starting on opening day, Pigott, a junior left fielder, has relished his opportunities, going 8 for 12 with three doubles and five RBIs in the last three games.
UF continued its outstanding pitching as Anthony DeSclafani made the emergency start for Alex Panteliodis, who did not make the trip because of an undisclosed illness.
DeSclafani went four scoreless innings with three strikeouts, allowing just three hits and no walks. The right-hander escaped trouble in the first, getting two outs with runners on the corners.
“He battled through that first inning,” O’Sullivan said. “But overall, I thought he threw the ball great. We’re going to need him. He’s greatly improved from a year ago.”
UF had six pitchers throw on the evening, but its scoreless streak of 22.2 innings — which dated back to the first inning of Saturday’s game against South Florida — ended when freshman Jonathon Crawford gave up a solo bomb to Owls center fielder Nathan Pittman in the sixth inning. Florida’s Nick Maronde gave up another solo shot in the seventh inning.
Etc.: Austin Maddox, who earlier this spring O’Sullivan said would pitch for UF sometime this season, threw a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts. … In its first four games, UF has surrendered just two walks and one error. “No walks, no errors, you always got a chance,” O’Sullivan said. … FAU committed four errors on the night. … O’Sullivan changed the lineup, moving Adams out of the two-hole.
