Coach Tim Walton likes what he has seen from his team so far this season.
“There’s a lot of bright spots, a lot of good things,” Walton said. “But I think the most important thing for me is we’ve been really consistent with our work ethic, consistent with our approach. We’ve come out to play every single game.”
Of Florida’s 10 players who have started at least eight of UF’s first 12 games, seven posted a batting average of at least .333 and six have recorded double-digit RBI totals. In those first 12 games, the Gators outscored their opponents 105-19.
Walton hopes that consistency continues when the No. 1 Gators host the three-day Lipton Invitational.
No. 1 Florida (12-0) opens up its six-game slate with a doubleheader tonight, playing Troy (4-5-1) at 4 p.m. followed by a contest against Indiana (1-9) at 6:15 p.m.
With the team playing three consecutive doubleheaders, Walton plans on using the tournament at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium to experiment with some position players and give some of his roster more playing time.
“One of the things we’re going to try to do a good job of is getting Taylore Fuller a little more reps behind the plate,” Walton said. “It’s something that I’ve talked to Aubree Munro about. You know, it’s a long season. Aubree has caught a bunch of our games for us so far.”
Walton also aims to give additional playing time to junior Briana Little and freshman Chelsea Herndon this weekend.
In their combined 10 at-bats this season, Little and Herndon accumulated five RBIs on a .400 batting average. Although the sample size is small, Walton is impressed with what he has seen from them.
“Briana Little and Chelsea Herndon have had good pinch-hits for us all season long and they need to get some starts now,” he said. “So I’m hoping to get them a couple starts and just keep plugging on the same things that we’re doing.”
In the pitcher’s circle, Walton will be rotating his usual trio of starters: senior Hannah Rogers, junior Lauren Haeger and freshman Delanie Gourley. All three have four wins under their belts this season, and the starting rotation has combined for 75 strikeouts against only 17 walks.
“That’s not easy when you’re putting together a team to have three quality pitchers like that and keep them happy,” Walton said. “I’m really happy with the way all three of them are pitching.”
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Taylore Fuller fist-bumps coach Tim Walton as she rounds third base after hitting a home run on May 18 against USF.
