The pitcher is the most scrutinized player in softball.
A poor performance in the circle can gift a victory to the opponent, but a great pitcher can completely shut down a team on her own.
The Florida Gators will be tasked with throwing lights-out and scoring against quality pitching when it plays the Jacksonville Dolphins at the Debbie and Fred Pruitt Softball Complex today at 5 p.m.
Providing solid pitching has not been a problem for UF this season, but hitting against it has been one of the team’s biggest issues.
Florida’s tough pitching staff
Florida has routinely fielded one of the nation’s best pitching staffs since coach Tim Walton took over in 2006. A UF pitcher has won SEC Pitcher of the Year five times since Walton’s first season, and 2019’s staff has performed to par.
Led by two-time All-American Kelly Barnhill, the Gators hold the 18th-best earned run average in the country (1.22). Three pitchers — Barnhill, Natalie Lugo and Elizabeth Hightower — have maintained ERAs of 1.00 or under.
Barnhill leads the NCAA in strikeouts (54) and she’s 10th in hits allowed per seven innings (2.41). She has started five games so far and allowed two or less hits in all but one of those performances (Arizona State had four on Friday).
Meanwhile, Lugo has allowed four fewer hits (seven) and five fewer walks (two) than Barnhill, although she has seen 10.1 less innings of action. She’s sixth in the country in hits allowed per seven innings (2.26)
Hightower is Florida’s most pleasant surprise. The freshman has pitched seven innings, given up only two hits and struck out 14 batters.
Coach Tim Walton was impressed with Hightower’s start against Utah State on Saturday, where she pitched three perfect innings to begin her outing.
“She really pitched with confidence and was excited to be on the mound,” Walton said.
Struggles on offense
It seems weird to say that a team batting .351 is having troubles at the plate. But the Gators have difficulty scoring against above-average pitchers.
Florida plated 78 runs in its first 11 games, but it only scored six earned runs against the four starting pitchers it has faced with sub-3.00 ERAs (2.21 earned runs per seven innings). The Gators offense amassed 20 hits in 19 innings against these pitchers (7.4 per seven innings). So batters are getting on base, just not hitting when it matters.
“To me, to be a great team, you have to hit with two strikes and two outs,” Walton said. “If you hit with two strikes and two outs, especially with runners in scoring position, you win championships.”
UF will face another challenging hurler in right-hander Alyssa Bilodeau. JU’s ace holds a 1.91 ERA and has given up 21 hits in 25.2 innings of work.
Bilodeau started against the Gators last season and held them to two runs and six hits. Florida won that contest 2-1, but if it doesn’t improve, it could find itself in another tight, low-scoring affair.
“Their (the Dolphins’) No. 1 pitcher has given us — not only us but everyone else — a tough time the past few years,” Walton said. “I think they’ll be tough just like every mid-week game.”
Follow Mark Stine on Twitter @mstinejr and contact him at mstine@alligator.org.
Florida pitcher Natalie Lugo is No. 6 in the NCAA in hits allowed per seven innings (2.26). She has allowed only seven hits and two walks this season.
