After starting the season with 22 straight wins, No. 1 Florida had trouble at the plate when it started its Southeastern Conference schedule against Ole Miss on Friday.
The Gators were limited to three hits and dropped their first game of the season 2-0 to the Rebels.
Ole Miss (15-7, 1-0 SEC) pitcher Carly Hummel — who pitched a perfect game against Utah State on Monday — kept Florida (22-1, 0-1 SEC) in line. The senior pitcher struck out 12 batters and allowed no runs as the Gators were shut out for the first time since they fell 3-0 to Texas on June 2.
“She had good stuff,” coach Tim Walton said. “When you can throw two and three different speeds in a couple different locations, it keeps your hitters off-balance, but I thought she pitched really well.”
Florida failed to execute on offense several times throughout the game. In the bottom of the fourth with bases loaded and one out, sophomores Taylor Schwarz and Aubree Munro both struck out to keep three runners on base.
One inning later, Kelsey Stewart hit a two-out single to give Florida its third — and ultimately its final — hit of the game. After the sophomore stole second and reached third on a throwing error, the Gators looked prime to get on the board. But sophomore Kirsti Merritt struck out after five pitches to leave Stewart stranded in scoring position
However, Munro did not go down without a fight in the fourth frame. The Brea, Calif., native faced 11 pitches before she struck out swinging bring the inning to an end without putting Florida on the scoreboard.
Walton commended Munro’s perseverance and ability to remain calm at the plate.
“That’s why she got that at-bat again in the seventh inning,” Walton said. “She did have a long at-bat. I had it all mapped out to where we could pinch hit if we needed to with Briana Little there in the nine hole to potentially tie the game if we had a runner on base.”
But when the seventh inning came, that runner never made it on base. With three outs separating Florida from its first loss of the season, Schwarz flied out to left field, and Munro and Taylore Fuller struck out after four pitches to stop the Gators from extending their winning streak into SEC play.
“I thought we showed some fight, but I’m going to credit [Hummel],” Walton said. “I thought she pitched really well. I thought they did a good job throwing pitches and we didn’t make as many adjustments as we needed to, but I’m going to give her credit.”
Hannah Rogers was one of the few bright spots for Florida. Despite earning her first loss of the season, the senior right-handed pitcher threw eight strikeouts to only two walks and gave up only two runs — an RBI double in the fourth inning and a leadoff home run in the sixth frame — in 6.1 innings.
But when her offense failed to provide any support, her success in the circle does little for the team.
“Hannah was good. I mean, you give up two runs and keep the score at two or under, you still have a chance to win,” Walton said. “But we can’t put anything on Hannah. We’ve got to score. We’ve got to give her runs. We just didn’t get it done, and that’s for sure.”
Florida will try to even out the series against Ole Miss on Saturday, with Game 2 of the series beginning at 2 p.m. The Gators and the Rebels will close out the series on Sunday at 11 a.m.
“You always look at it as your team’s first loss,” Walton said. “You’ll see how they respond. They’re either going to come out scared or they’re going to come out like gangbusters and get after it. I think that’s really the challenge for them.”
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Taylor Schwarz swings during Florida’s 4-2 win against Mississippi State on Apr. 6, 2013, at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
