With Florida trailing by just two runs entering the sixth inning, the game unraveled in a hurry.
Troy exploded for nine runs in the sixth, turning a competitive contest into a rout as Florida (41-20) fell to the Trojans (35-30) 16-11, in the Gainesville Regional on Sunday at Condron Ballpark.
The Trojans sent 14 batters to the plate in the decisive inning and took advantage of four Florida pitchers, multiple walks and a hit batter to put the game out of reach.
Junior starting pitcher Liam Peterson began the inning by allowing the first two batters to reach before graduate left-hander Ernesto Lugo-Canchola entered in relief. Lugo-Canchola immediately surrendered a single to load the bases before senior shortstop Aaron Piasecki lined an RBI single up the middle.
“They were on his stuff, there weren't a lot of swings and misses,” head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said of Peterson’s performance.
Redshirt freshman Schuyler Sandford replaced Lugo-Canchola but struggled to slow the damage. Sandford walked in a run, hit a batter with the bases loaded and allowed an RBI single as Troy stretched its lead to 11-5.
“I wish we had Barbs,” O’Sullivan said.
Sophomore righty Jackson Barberi threw a career-high 61 pitches in Saturday's win over Miami.
The Trojans still weren't finished. Redshirt senior right-hander Billy Barlow entered with the bases loaded and walked the first batter he faced before junior designated hitter Jabe Boroff crushed a grand slam over the right field wall to cap the nine-run frame and push Troy's lead to 16-5.
“We’re at a point in the season where I don’t know what else to say,” O’Sullivan said.
Florida mounted a late rally but never seriously threatened.
“We’re chasing runs the entire game,” O’Sullivan said.
The Gators loaded the bases in the eighth inning before senior second baseman Cade Kurland launched a grand slam into the right-field bullpen to cut the deficit to 16-9. The home run was Kurland's third in the last two games.
Florida continued to battle in the ninth when redshirt sophomore two-way player Caden McDonald launched his second home run of the game — this time a two-run blast. However, the comeback attempt ended there.
Despite the outcome, the Gators briefly appeared poised to seize momentum early.
After Troy jumped ahead 2-0 in the first inning on a two-run home run from sophomore catcher Jimmy Janicki, Florida responded in the second. Senior catcher Karson Bowen opened the inning with an infield single before junior first baseman Landon Stripling and Kurland followed with hits to load the bases.
Redshirt sophomore center fielder Kyle Jones then blooped a two-run single into center field to tie the game at 2-2.
The tie was short-lived.
Peterson ran into trouble in the third inning when sophomore right fielder Houston Markham launched a solo home run to give Troy the lead. Following back-to-back singles, Janicki struck again, blasting a three-run homer, his second of the game, to put the Trojans ahead 6-2.
Florida's offense went quiet over the next two innings, going down in order in both the third and fourth.
The Gators clawed back into the game in the fifth when sophomore shortstop Brendan Lawson launched a towering 437-foot, two-run home run, his third homer of the Gainesville Regional, to pull Florida within two.
Troy answered immediately in the bottom half of the inning as senior first baseman Blake Cavill blasted a solo home run to restore a three-run lead.
Florida again responded when McDonald crushed a 448-foot leadoff home run in the sixth to make it 7-5. During the inning, Kurland was hit by a pitch for the 52nd time in his career, passing former Florida star Matt LaPorta for the program record in career hit-by-pitches.
But any momentum the Gators gained quickly disappeared as Troy's explosive sixth inning ended Florida's chance for a regional sweep.
“Shake it off, we got another game tomorrow,” McDonald said.
Florida finished with four home runs and 10 runs but could not overcome Troy's 16-hit barrage and nine-run sixth inning.
The Gators will take on Troy again tomorrow in a winner-take all-matchup at 6 p.m. as they look to advance to the Super Regionals.
Contact Colton Veres at cveres@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @colton_veres.
Colton Veres is a senior sports journalism student in his first semester at The Alligator. He is currently the Summer 2026 baseball reporter. In his free time he enjoys watching the Red Sox and spending times with friends and loved ones.
