Florida’s fall from the top of the college baseball polls was a swift one — one that surely has people questioning if this team is as good as it was advertised to be entering the season.
Any momentum No. 1 Florida got from Friday night’s shutout victory against No. 12 LSU went by the wayside in Saturday’s series finale.
After Thursday’s series-opening loss to LSU, UF coach Kevin O’Sullivan said his team would need a great outing out of starting pitcher Jonathon Crawford to have a chance on Friday.
It took 37 days, but Karsten Whitson finally appears to be done watching.
JACKSONVILLE — Kevin O’Sullivan could do nothing but shake his head and shrug his shoulders as he looked around at an emptying Harmon Stadium.
Don’t blame Vickash Ramjit for Florida’s bats slumping since Southeastern Conference play began.
For once, it wasn’t the Gators celebrating.
For the first 16 innings of Florida’s weekend series against Ole Miss, the Rebels frustrated the Gators’ bats, limiting them to just three hits Friday night and two runs through seven innings Saturday afternoon.
Florida’s bats still haven’t arrived in Oxford, Miss., and Kevin O’Sullivan isn’t entirely surprised.
Karsten Whitson won’t take the mound for the Gators this weekend.
JACKSONVILLE — An unproven newcomer got the best of a heralded All-American Tuesday night.
For left-handed reliever Steven “Paco” Rodriguez, being the No. 1 team in the nation means more than just a 22-2 record and national acclaim.
The only thing that stood between Florida and its first College World Series title last season was South Carolina — a team that has had the Gators’ number recently.
With one ninth-inning at-bat, Nolan Fontana made everyone forget about his, and the Gators’, struggles against the Gamecocks — at least for the moment.
For all intents and purposes, it took longer to get Friday night’s game between No. 1 Florida and No. 8 South Carolina started than it did to decide a winner. Beginning at 7 p.m., Carolina Stadium sat empty and wet for the better part of 84 minutes — hampered by a rain delay.
Austin Maddox flinched when the contact came.
Florida’s trip last year to Omaha, Neb., for the College World Series continues to weigh on Preston Tucker’s mind for all the wrong reasons.
For the first month of the season, Johnny Magliozzi wasn’t quite himself.
It would be easy for the Gators to stretch their weekly Monday off day into Tuesday.
The No. 1 baseball team in the country started four freshmen in its lineup Sunday afternoon. This wasn’t an exhibition or a midweek pushover — it was Florida against Vanderbilt with a sweep in the opening weekend of Southeastern Conference play on the line.
Solutions by The State News
