While it wasn’t a perfect weekend, it was certainly close.
After losing to No. 16 Nebraska on Saturday, the No. 2 Florida softball team (25-1, 2-0 SEC) responded with a 10-2 drubbing of South Florida to finish a 4-1 weekend at the USF Under Armour Showcase in Clearwater.
The Gators rebounded in a big way with nine hits, including three home runs, after being shut out for the first time all season Saturday.
Led by the hot hitting of Megan Bush, UF scored double-digit runs for the eighth time this year.
The senior first baseman was a force all weekend, launching three home runs, including a solo shot in the third inning against the Bulls.
She added a sacrifice fly in the fourth and a single in the sixth, pushing her average to .451.
“This weekend, I was seeing the ball better than I ever have before,” she said. “My approach has been much more relaxed, especially with two strikes.”
The two hitters in front of Bush, Kelsey Bruder and Brittany Schutte, continued to frustrate opposing pitchers.
Bruder reached base in all four plate appearances and didn’t stop there.
The left fielder scored three runs on three walks and a single, even stealing a base, while Schutte showed off her signature power with a three-run homer in the third and a double in the fourth.
As one of the most experienced players on the team, Bush makes it her job to carry the lineup even when the younger players have struggles.
“I want to be better hitting behind them, so they can get better pitches,” she said. “I’ve always put a lot of pressure on myself, but now, I’m trying to have fun and not focus on my mechanics and just hit.”
Although sophomore Ensley Gammel allowed two runs and walked three, the Gators’ pitching staff performed well all weekend.
Freshman Hannah Rogers drew the start and earned her 11th win, tossing four scoreless innings. Senior Stephanie Brombacher, meanwhile, improved to 14-0 and said UF’s high-scoring offense has taken a lot of pressure off her this year.
Despite taking the loss against Nebraska, Rogers has firmly established herself as a dependable and dominant complement to Brombacher.
While the Gators weren’t able to pull out the win against the Cornhuskers, Brombacher said the game was tight and was a good test against a top-flight pitcher.
“The loss doesn’t define us,” Bush said. “We know we’re not going to go undefeated now, but we don’t play to not lose. We want to win, and we’ll never go out there and play scared.”
