Sunday was a career day for Gators junior outfielder Hayden Yost. He went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and claimed his first multi-homer game with two long balls. Yost’s play capped off a 16-hit and four-home run day for UF after recording just two total base hits in Saturday’s loss.
Florida (27-10, 9-6 SEC) dismantled No. 4 Georgia (29-8, 11-4 SEC) 13-7 in the rubber match Sunday afternoon in Athens, Georgia, to claim the series victory, as the team recorded its second top-five weekend series victory this season.
The Gators started the opening frame with a pair of baserunners, as sophomore outfielder Kyle Jones led off with a single to left field and sophomore infielder Brendan Lawson induced a walk.
Then, still with no outs, sophomore infielder Ethan Surowiec went long to left field for a three-run bomb to give Florida an early 3-0 lead.
But, Georgia threatened in the bottom of the opening frame. UF junior righty Russell Sandefer issued a walk to UGA junior catcher Daniel Jackson, and sophomore infielder Rylan Lujo doubled to left-center to put two runners in scoring position with two outs.
A 2 RBI base hit to left field from senior infielder Michael O’Shaughnessey cut the Gators’ lead to one run as both teams combined for five runs on five hits in the first inning.
Florida earned those runs back in the second, as junior outfielder Hayden Yost and Jones both barreled home runs to bring it back to a three-run advantage. That ended the day for Bulldogs senior pitcher Matt Scott, as he was relieved for graduate Grant Edwards after just one and a third innings.
Once again, however, Georgia had a response ready to continue the back-and-forth scoring. Sandefer walked one batter and hit another on the helmet, which was followed up by three straight RBI base hits from Jackson, senior infielder Jordy Oriach and Lujo notched the game at five runs apiece.
That ended Sandefer’s day, as he was relieved for junior Luke McNeillie. Sandefer gave up five hits and five runs while walking two batters and striking out two, as both teams saw their starting pitchers exit the hill early.
McNeillie walked his first batter, giving the Bulldogs loaded bases with two outs. The righty responded, though, striking out the next batter to leave three runners stranded.
Florida earned another pair of baserunners to start the third, as senior outfielder Blake Cyr led off with a single to center field and proceeded to steal second. Junior infielder Cade Kurland followed up by forcing a walk on six pitches.
With one out, Yost lined one to center field to earn loaded bases for the Gators. Freshman infielder Kolt Myers was walked, allowing Cyr to trot home as Florida regained the lead. Jones was hit by a pitch to plate Kurland to make it a two-run ballgame.
Lawson sent Myers and Yost home with a double to left field. Surowiec added two more with a 2 RBI base hit to right field to cap off a six-run inning as the Gators earned an 11-5 advantage.
Despite issuing a walk and a single in the bottom of the third, McNeillie stranded both of them with a two-out fan on Jackson to force the first scoreless frame for either side.
Kurland led off the fourth with a single to right field. Then, Yost homered for the second time to right field, scoring himself and Kurland to extend the lead to eight runs.
McNeillie surrendered a leadoff double to Oriach in the fourth, but stranded him with a flyout and two consecutive strikeouts.
In the top of the fifth, Cyr barrelled a big two-out, two-strike double to center field. But, he was left stranded by a Kurland groundout as the score remained 13-5 at the midpoint.
McNeillie saw trouble in the fifth, walking senior infielder Ryan Black and surrendering a double to fellow senior infielder Kolby Branch as the Bulldogs had two runners in scoring position with no outs. McNeillie was then relieved for senior Ernesto Lugo-Canchola after finishing with four strikeouts and earning the win.
The former Division II pitcher retired three straight batters with two strikeouts to leave Black and Branch stranded.
Florida earned another two base runners in the sixth from a Yost walk and a two-out base hit from Jones. However, they were left helpless as Lawson popped up to second base.
Jones finished 5-for-5 on the day with two RBIs and his solo shot.
Meanwhile, Lugo-Canchola continued to deal, retiring the side of Georgia’s order to end the sixth inning. The cold stretch affected both offenses as the Gators went down in order in the top of the seventh.
Lugo-Canchola surrendered two base hits in the bottom of the seventh before being subbed for freshman Joshua Whritenour with two runners on.
Whritenour hit his first batter on a 1-2 count to load the bases, but left them stranded on a fielder’s choice to second base.
Georgia inched closer in the bottom of the eighth. With runners on first and second, Black hit an RBI single with two outs to right field to make it a seven-run ballgame. Then, Branch hit a ground-rule double to plate one more.
Whritenour limited the damage, striking out his third Bulldog of the inning to strand two as Florida held onto a 13-7 lead heading into the final frame.
The Gators failed to claim insurance in the ninth, as two runners were left stranded on two fielder’s choice groundouts.
Whritenour slammed the door on the Dawgs, retiring the side to secure the series for Florida.
The Gators are back home at Condron Family Ballpark Tuesday to face off against Bethune-Cookman. 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.
