In a span of minutes, Miami's demons reared their ugly head again, and Nolan Fontana possibly saved Florida's season.
A year after the Hurricanes committed nine errors in their 2010 Super Regional loss to the Gators, UM again racked up a barrage of miscues Saturday, falling to UF 5-4 after a dramatic walk-off single from Fontana.
"You've got to play catch, and we made too many errors," Miami coach Jim Morris said. "It cost us the game."
The Gators and ‘Canes traded runs back and forth all afternoon, but in the ninth inning of both team's second game of the Gainesville Regional, Miami imploded, evoking déjà vu flashbacks from a late-game collapse a season ago.
"People ask about pressure, the pressure was self-inflected," Miami third baseman Brad Fieger said.
With one out in 4-4 tie, UM shortstop Stephen Perez botched a routine play, igniting Florida's rally - exactly like last season.
Perez couldn't field Daniel Pigott's chopper, opening the floodgates for a bevy of miscues. Miami reliever Travis Miller immediately balked and then walked Vickash Ramjit on five pitches. Morris inserted his closer, Daniel Miranda, who promptly tossed a wild pitch with Cody Dent at the plate.
Dent, batting a meager .169, worked a walk after attempting to safety squeeze on three straight pitches.
"Huge at-bat," UF coach Kevin O'Sullivan said. "He rose to the occasion."
Morris had a differing opinion saying, "When you walk the ninth hitter - who's hitting, I don' t know exactly what his batting average is - but you have to challenge those guys."
With the bases loaded, Fontana followed with a rope to left center, ending the ball game and sending a boisterous crowd into a frenzy.
"Sully talked to me right before. It's all about the 15 steps to home plate before your at-bat," Fontana said. "I got on top of one a little bit and got a base hit."
With usual weekend starter Brian Johnson still on the mend from his concussion and Austin Maddox unable to play after spraining his foot Friday, the Gators depth is a concern. A loss could've seriously derailed their season.
But bullpen stalwarts Nick Maronde and Tommy Toledo filled in adequately for Maddox, recording the last seven outs to close the game.
"You've got to tip your cap to our guys," O'Sullivan said. "I'm really proud of the way they battled all day. ... Every team deals with adversity and now is our time. We needed some guys to step up, and they did that today."
Florida (47-16), winners of five straight in postseason play against Miami, now needs just one victory in the next two days, while the ‘Canes (37-22) must win three straight to advance to a Super Regional.
"It's a pressure game. It puts UF in the drivers seat," Morris said. "Our backs are now against the wall."
UM tallied four errors on the day, and each one had a hand in a Florida run. The Gators trailed 2-0 in the fourth but quickly erased their deficit after the ‘Canes failed to corral a normal foul pop-up.
Preston Tucker (2 for 4, one RBI) and Mike Zunino (2 for 4, one RBI) strung together back-to-back doubles to start the frame. With one out and a man on second, Tyler Thompson (2 for 4, one RBI) poked a pop-up near Florida's dugout, but a miscommunication between UM's third baseman and catcher caused the ball to drop.
With house money, Thompson immediately stroked a game-tying double.
In the fifth, Florida plated another pair involving two more Miami errors. The Gators scored a go-ahead run when Fontana (2 for 5, one RBI) laced a ball to left, and the outfielder fumbled the ball away, allowing Ramjit to score.
Miami actually took an early lead, plating a run in the third and fourth off nemesis Hudson Randall.
Florida's ace has frustrated UM hitters during his career, sporting a 0.95 batting average against and 1.32 ERA before Saturday's contest. But the sophomore righty wasn't quite on point in his second taste of regional action, laboring through the heat and questionable umpiring.
In the third, Randall was squeezed with a pair of close calls, nearly leading to the ejection of O'Sullivan.
Randall tossed a season-high 96 pitches in six innings, allowing three runs on six hits.
The Gators play tomorrow at 4 p.m. against the winner of Jacksonville and Miami.
