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Friday, March 29, 2024

UF baseball coach sets record with 557th win as Gators defeat Georgia State

The Gators’ midweek win against Georgia State dubs O’Sullivan the winningest coach in Gators baseball history

Another round of lockdown pitching carried the Gators to a 5-1 win against Georgia State. Photo from UF-UM game Feb. 19. Courtesy of the SEC Media Portal.
Another round of lockdown pitching carried the Gators to a 5-1 win against Georgia State. Photo from UF-UM game Feb. 19. Courtesy of the SEC Media Portal.

A run-of-the-mill fly ball lofted to center field landed softly into the web of Jud Fabian’s glove, and the game ended. 

The players ran to O’Sullivan as he wore one of the biggest smiles since the 2017 National Championship win. Fans rose to their feet as the overhead speaker announced that Kevin O’Sullivan completed his 557th win as the Gators’ head coach.

Another round of lockdown pitching carried the Gators to a 5-1 win against Georgia State Tuesday evening. And O’Sullivan is the program’s winningest head coach. 

Florida’s unpredicted struggles on the mound dominated the season’s early narrative. The Gators turned a corner now just about a week-and-a-half out from SEC opening weekend. 

Right-hander Garrett Milchin started the game off strong. Milchin threw for four innings and gave up just three hits and no runs over 60 pitches. The 2021 season warped into a comeback for the right-hander. Before the Feb. 23 game against UNF, he hadn’t appeared in a game since the 2017 College World Series, plagued by two Tommy John surgeries. 

“I think that may have been one of the best starts we’ve had all year long from a command standpoint,” O’Sullivan said. 

Trey Van Der Weide took over for Milchin in the fifth. Another seasoned arm, Van Der Weide carried the game through the seventh inning. He gave up just one hit and one earned run over 39 pitches. 

The Gators came out hot on the plate before the bats fizzled out. 

The first inning opened with a bang. Nathan Hickey reached base first on a walk. Kirby McMullen then stepped up to the plate and delivered a two-run shot that sailed easily over the left field wall. 

“I was pretty happy to get my first one out of the way this season,” McMullen said. “Being able to jog around the bases was pretty nice today.”

The home run presented McMullen’s first big statement at the plate since his return from injury. The senior incurred an ankle injury in the Feb. 23 UNF game and returned to the plate March 5 against Florida A&M. 

“It’s definitely sucked kind of being hurt the past few days, but I’m definitely happy to be back out there,” McMullen said. 

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The Gators earned another three runs across the next two innings. 

In the second, Colby Halter knocked a double down the right-field line and advanced to third on an error. Josh Rivera sent him home with a groundout to the shortstop. 

The Gators loaded the bases in the third for Jordan Butler, who sent a sac fly out to left field to send one run home. Kendrick Calilao loaded the bases again, and Nathan Hickey crossed the plate for the game’s final run on a fielder’s choice in Halter’s at-bat. 

Both Jacob Young and Jordan Butler surrendered their hit streaks Tuesday. Young’s met its end after a record-setting 30 games while Butler’s ended its climb at 12 games. 

The Gators look to advance to a four-game win streak when they face Stetson Wednesday.

Contact Sara Kate Dyson at skatedyson@alligator.org or follow her on Twitter at @sarakatedyson

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