Coming off their first SEC series loss and dropping two spots in the rankings, the Gators needed to regroup, but it was no easy task ahead with the Stetson Hatters.
Last week, the Hatters pushed the Gators to the brink, taking a 2–0 lead at one point before Florida responded with three unanswered runs to secure a 3–2 victory.
Yet again, it was another nail-biter Wednesday evening, with Florida holding a slim 2–1 lead heading into the fifth inning. But Florida’s offense broke the close margin.
Redshirt freshman Townsen Thomas led the frame off with a bunt single, and an error allowed her to advance to second. From then, junior Cassidy McLellan singled and Gabi Comia lined a groundball off the Hatter’s second baseman Madelyn Synoracki’s glove that trickled into the outfield allowing Thomas to score.
Entering the at-bat two RBIs shy of 200 for her career, senior Jocelyn Erickson stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and delivered. The catcher lined a single into right-center, scoring McLellan and Comia to extend the lead to 5–1. She became the sixth Gator in program history to reach the milestone.
No. 5 Florida (34-4, 9-3 SEC) bounced back with a 8–2 win over Stetson (22-15, 7-2 A-SUN) on Wednesday at Patricia Wilson Field. The Gators improved to 9–0 against in-state opponents, including wins over USF, North Florida, Jacksonville, FIU, Bethune-Cookman and Stetson, outscoring them 87-15.
Both teams struggled with runners on base, as the two sides combined to leave 21 runners stranded.
A few mental errors by the Hatters allowed Florida to get on the scoreboard right out of the gate. An error by the Stetson shortstop Irianis Garcia allowed the UF leadoff sophomore Taylor Shumaker to reach and two free passes surrendered by the starting pitcher Ava Braswell gave Florida the bases loaded.
Thomas broke the tie with an RBI single up the middle, scoring Shumaker from third. Braswell responded by retiring the next two Gators to escape the jam. The centerfielder led UF with three hits on the night.
Recording her first start since March 8, freshman Leah Stevens notched her sixth start in the circle and saw two innings of work while surrendering one run. Florida’s main reliever junior Olivia Miller also hurled two innings, but surrendered three free passes tying a season high from her.
Fresh off its first-inning run, Florida’s bats stayed hot in the second. With two outs, Shumaker sparked the rally with a single up the middle, and Erickson followed with a four-pitch walk. Senior Kenleigh Cahalan then drove in her 46th RBI of the season, with Shumaker scoring her second run of the day to extend the lead to 2–0.
In response, Stetson’s Amber Chumley doubled to left, scoring Garcia and cutting the deficit to 2–1. In the fourth, right fielder Gia Napoli made a highlight-reel play, robbing Shumaker of a home run.
After surrendering three runs in the top of the fifth, Stetson’s offense needed a spark and found one. A double and two free passes issued by Miller loaded the bases. Logan Foreman then lifted a sacrifice fly, scoring one run and trimming Florida’s lead to three.
That ended Miller’s day. With two on and two outs, sophomore Katelynn “Red” Oxley entered the circle and took control. She recorded the final out of the fifth and never looked back, tossing 2.1 hitless innings while striking out three Hatters.
Off the momentum ending performance from Oxley, Florida, put up three more runs in the top of the sixth. A sacrifice bunt by junior Ella Wesolowski allowed junior Kendall Grover to score and a two run shot to deep center by junior Madison Walker put the icing on the cake for Florida.
Following its 14th straight win over the Hatters, Florida returns to action on Friday night against Mississippi State. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
Contact Zach Moore at zmoore@alligator.org. Follow him on X @zach_moore27.
Zach is a sophomore sports journalism student in his first semester at The Alligator, covering softball. He also has experience as an intern in the Florida Collegiate Summer League. Zach enjoys watching sports in his free time, primarily the Minnesota Vikings, Orlando Magic, and Arsenal FC.
