Lauren Haeger continues to prove that she is a dual threat.
The junior right-hander pitched a complete-game shutout and crushed a seventh-inning grand slam down the right field line as No. 5 Florida (44-10, 14-9 Southeastern Conference) topped Arkansas (27-27, 5-18 SEC) 11-0 on Saturday to clinch the series in Fayetteville, Ark.
“She competed. She really had some good pitches,” coach Tim Walton said in a radio interview. “She got a lot of popups early in the game. I thought she commanded the zone well. … I was really happy with the way she threw it.”
The Gators have found an affinity for the long ball against the Razorbacks.
After hitting three home runs against Arkansas en route to an 8-3 victory to open up the series on Friday, No. 5 Florida drove four more out of the park to win Game 2.
After plating three runs in the second inning off of an error and a wild pitch, Florida brought in the remainder of its score on home runs.
In addition to Haeger’s grand slam — Florida’s eight of the season —first baseman Taylor Schwarz hit a two-out solo shot to left-center field, second baseman Kelsey Stewart hit a leadoff homer in the sixth inning and right fielder Briana Little knocked one of her own out of the park four at-bats later.
“We hit a ball out to right field. We hit a ball out to left field. We hit a ball out to left-center — just using the whole ballpark,” Walton said. “I thought we made a good adjustment off of that off-speed pitch early in the game, pounding the ball in the ground and found ways to get hits with two strikes.”
Haeger’s outing in the circle was one of her best of the season. In her fifth complete game and second shutout of 2014, the Peoria, Ariz., native struck out three batters while allowing no free passes. Haeger threw first-pitch strikes to 19 of the 28 batters she faced.
On the season, the junior boasts a team-best 1.71 ERA while holding opponents to a .176 clip at the plate.
Despite Haeger’s performance, the shutout was almost lost in the seventh. With one out in the final frame and runners on first and second, Arkansas second baseman Chloe Oprzedek hit a ball to deep center field that looked to be a surefire home run.
But sophomore Kirsti Merritt made the catch, jumping the wall to get the out. Haeger would force a groundout on the next at-bat to end the game.
“That was pretty good,” Walton said of Merritt’s catch. “It kept the shutout intact. … What a great job by Kirsti to come in and not only make the catch but heads up enough to also make a good throw right after the catch.”
*A radio broadcast contributed to this report
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Lauren Haeger swings during Florida’s 2-0 win against Ole Miss on March 9 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
