A
day after bunting was Florida's best chance at a hit against
Alabama, the Gators peppered the Crimson Tide with the long
ball.
Led by senior Kelsey Bruder's three run, walk-off homer in the
seventh, No. 8 Florida (39-8, 14-7 Southeastern Conference) leveled
its weekend series with No. 3 Alabama (42-6, 16-5 SEC) thanks to
three home runs.
"It's huge in every sense of the imagination for any game," UF
coach Tim Walton said. "That's our first walk-off of the year, so
it was awesome. I don't know if there's anything more special than
doing it against Alabama and one of the best pitchers in the
country."
While the Gators' game-winner came at the expense of Crimson Tide
ace Kelsi Dunne, who pitched a shutout on Friday, it was Saturday's
starter Jackie Traina who had the initial misfortune of facing
Florida's revitalized hitting game.
Alabama's freshman pitcher gave up back-to-back bombs in the
fourth, including a two-run shot by Megan Bush and a solo homer by
Tiffany DeFelice, giving the Gators a one run lead heading into the
fifth.
"With the way our swings are structured that never surprises me
just because we swing big," Bruder said. "Long balls, I expect
those day in and day out."
For the second-straight game Stephanie Brombacher started on the
mound for Florida, and the senior allowed two home runs of her
own.
In the fifth, Brombacher surrendered a solo shot to Whitney Larsen,
tying the game. The senior gave up a two-run shot to Kayla Braun
with one out in the seventh, ending her day and giving the Crimson
Tide a 5-3 lead.
"I was missing my pitches just like I was yesterday in the innings
before," Brombacher said.
"I mean, sometimes they get in and get those little hits in but
other times they don't. I was just missing my pitches."
Florida's ace went 6.1 innings with five hits and four
strikeouts.
Walton said he didn't want to pull Brombacher until she gave up the
lead in the last inning, noting she rallied well earlier in the
game to close the door on batters after she gave up a run.
"She was clutch, so clutch," Bruder said. "Obviously, she wasn't
100 percent, so for her to go up there and just show her heart,
that was complete heart. I know she's still being bothered by that
bicep."
After freshman Hannah Rogers finished the top of the seventh
inducing a groundball double play, the stage was set for Bruder's
dramatics.
Following a walk, a base hit and a strikeout, the senior left
fielder swung on the first pitch she saw by Dunne and said it felt
gone as soon as she made contact.
"I had just fired everyone up in the dugout and said ‘Hey, this is
what we're made of. What are we going to do? Are we going to win or
are we going to roll over?'" Bruder said. "We decided the right
one."
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