UF senior outfielder Blake Cyr had himself a series against Auburn with four home runs, including two long balls in the series finale.
However, the Gators’ offense went cold with just five hits and only three after the first inning, as the Tigers responded with a five-run ninth frame to seal the deal.
No. 20 Florida (28-13, 10-8 SEC) fell 8-5 against No. 13 Auburn (26-12, 10-8 SEC) Saturday afternoon at Condron Family Ballpark as the Tigers took advantage of four UF errors to secure the series.
“It’s disappointing,” head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “We had more errors than hits going into the ninth. We’re gonna have to move on.”
UF junior righty Russell Sandefer set the tone on the mound, retiring the side of the Tigers’ order in the opening frame.
Sophomore shortstop Brendan Lawson forced a four-pitch walk with one out to get Florida’s offense started in the bottom of the first. Fellow sophomore infielder Ethan Surowiec followed up with a base hit through the left side to put two runners on.
Then, with two outs, Cyr continued his big weekend with a three-run moon shot to left field to give Florida a three-run lead.
Despite surrendering a walk with two outs in the second, Sandefer left him stranded with a groundout to junior first baseman Landon Stripling, who had three unassisted putouts in the inning.
Sandefer continued to deal in the third, setting down three Auburn batters in order on two groundouts and a flyout.
Sophomore outfielder Kyle Jones led off the bottom of the third with a single to center field, but was caught stealing second as Florida came up empty.
A fielding error from Surowiec in the top of the fourth allowed sophomore second baseman Chris Rembert to reach first with two outs. But Sandefer worked around the misplay, forcing another groundout to leave Rembert helpless. The Gators’ offense fell flat to follow, going down in order to end the fourth frame.
Surowiec’s second fielding error of the game sent freshman outfielder Ethin Bingaman to first, and he proceeded to steal second shortly after.
Senior catcher Lucas Steele then walked to put two Tigers on base with no outs. Shortstop Brandon McCraine advanced Bingaman to third on a fielder’s choice as Sreele was walked.
Junior outfielder Hayden Yost earned an impressive web gem, diving for a fly ball in right field, but it was enough for Bingaman to tag up and reach home to make it a 3-1 ballgame.
Auburn brought it within one as freshman outfielder Mason McCraine hammered an RBI single down the right side on a 2-2 count to plate his brother Brandon.
That ended Sandefer’s afternoon, as he was relieved for senior Ernesto Lugo-Canchola after recording two strikeouts while surrendering just one hit on 89 pitches.
Lugo-Canchola stepped up and retired his first batter on a deep fly-out to leave McCraine stranded at first.
Senior designated hitter Cole Stanford drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the fifth. But he was left stranded as Yost and Jones went down.
Rembert singled to right-center in the sixth, but he was caught trying to steal second with two outs as Lugo-Canchola retired them in order after Stripling’s pickoff.
However, Florida’s offense once again failed to gain traction, going down in order for the third straight frame to end the sixth.
Bingaman led off the seventh with a base hit to shallow center field. Lugo-Canchola responded by forcing a flyout on Steele before being subbed in favor of freshman Joshua Whritenour. Lugo-Canchola logged four forced fly outs while surrendering two hits and zero runs.
Whritenour blanked the Tigers with a strikeout and some help from senior catcher Karson Bowen, who threw a laser to catch Bingaman trying to steal second.
The Gators continued to fail to get insurance, as they were set down in order again in the bottom of the seventh, adding more pressure on Whritenour.
Sophomore outfielder Bub Terrell needed just one pitch in the top of the eighth to tie the ballgame at three runs apiece with a solo bomb to left field. Whritenour bounced back with a groundout and two fly outs, but Florida needed a big knock to back up the freshman.
It was the same story, as the Gators’ offense went ice cold again to come up with nothing entering the ninth inning.
Madrigal led off the top of the ninth with a powerful drive through the right side. Surowiec then failed to come up with another ground ball that sent Bingaman to first as the Tigers earned two runners on base with no outs.
Then, Steele bunted, and Whritenour could not throw an accurate pass to first as one Tiger scored to give Auburn a one-run lead.
Then, a two-run double down the right field line from Brandon McCraine made it a three-run ballgame. That ended the day for Whritenour, who was taken out for senior Ricky Reeth.
Mason McCraine continued right where he left off from Friday, barrelling a two-run homer to center field as Auburn extended its lead to 8-3.
Reeth put two more runners on with a walk and a base hit before being relieved for sophomore Caden McDonald.
McDonald fanned his first batter, but the onslaught was too much to overcome as Florida went down in the final inning despite a two-run bomb from Cyr.
“I hate to lose at home. We hate to lose at home,” Cyr said. “You don’t want to lose in front of your fans.”
Florida is back in action Tuesday for its second midweek matchup against Jacksonville. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.
Contact Adrian Carmona at acarmona@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @abcarmona04.
Adrian is a senior journalism major and the baseball reporter for the Spring of 2026. He previously served as the soccer reporter in the fall of 2025. He enjoys playing Sporcle quizzes and ranting about South Florida sports.
