Kelsey Stewart stood on third base, 60 feet from scoring.
Instead of waiting for sophomore Bailey Castro to drive her in, Stewart took the initiative.
Fellow freshman Kirsti Merritt, who was stationed on first base, broke for second, distracting the Auburn defense while Stewart ran to the plate and scored easily, getting Florida on the board first on Saturday.
“As soon as I see the ball, it was like, ‘I’m going,’” Stewart said. “I heard coach (Tim Walton) screaming at me, but I was like, ‘Coach, I know.’”
Stewart’s steal of home came in a 5-4 loss to the Tigers, but her speed has been key to No. 3 Florida’s (25-2, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) success this season.
Through 27 games, the freshman second baseman has stolen 23 bases and has yet to be caught stealing. Her stolen-base total is more than double Merritt’s, who is second on the team with 10 swiped bags.
Stewart’s speed on the base paths has led the Gators to a stolen-base percentage of 91.9, with Stewart accumulating more than 33 percent of the steals.
“I’m just trying to work for the team,” Stewart said. “Base hits, getting to the next base, not being forced out. Or if I am, sliding into the player so that it’s not a double play.”
When Stewart gets on first, she is an immediate threat to take second. Fortunately for Florida, she has the opportunity to take extra bases often.
In addition to leading the team in steals, Stewart leads the team in batting average with a .409 clip and in runs with 29. She is second in on-base percentage at .486.
“It really is almost every single into a double,” coach Tim Walton said. “Whether she hits a double or gets on first and steals second.”
Stewart has motored around the bases throughout the season. She has five triples; no one else on the team has more than one. Stewart turned a deep fly ball against Savannah State on Feb. 15 into Florida’s only inside-the-park home run this season.
“She’s one of the big reasons why we can score runs,” Walton said, “When she gets on, we typically score a lot of runs.”
Stewart is not the only player stealing her way around the bases. Merritt is second on the team with 10, freshman Taylore Fuller has eight and sophomore Jessica Damico has racked up seven steals.
With 68 stolen bases in 27 games, Florida is on pace to shatter the team stolen-base record set by the 2007 squad. That year, the team stole 129 bases in 72 games, or 1.8 per game. This year’s team is averaging 2.5 per contest.
“I always put an emphasis on the speed part of our game,” Walton said. “When you have athletic people, they tend to make good decisions on the bases. I think we’ve made a lot of good decisions this year, more so than we have in the past.”
Florida will likely be off and running again this weekend when No. 6 Tennessee (22-4, 2-1 SEC) comes to Gainesville for a three-game series. The Gators will be in for a challenge, as the Volunteers have only allowed 53 percent of runners to steal safely this season.
“They’re going to push us,” Stewart said.
“We’re going to have to be almost perfect to beat them.”
Contact Adam Lichtenstein at alichtenstein@alligator.org.
Freshman infielder Kelsey Stewart (7) throws a ball to freshman first baseman Taylor Schwarz (49) to end an inning during Florida’s 9-1 win over UNC Wilmington on Feb. 17 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Stewart is one of Florida's key underclassmen who have fueled the team's success this season.
