With two on and two out, second baseman Blake Reese popped a 3-2 pitch into shallow right field that narrowly fell in among the outstretched arms of three Long Beach State players.
Reese made it to second standing up, looking over to the dugout with excitement to celebrate after plating both Smith and first baseman Kendrick Calilao to give the Gators their first lead of the game at 2-0.
Florida wasn't done however, as freshman center fielder Jud Fabian took advantage of a pitch, lacing it down the right-field line to score Reese.
The gritty sequence in the bottom of the second inning proved to be the determining factor of UF's 5-2 series-clinching win over the Long Beach State Dirtbags on Saturday afternoon.
Through his first two games as a Gator, both of Fabian's hits have been doubles.
The freshman has been impressive to begin his college career, considering he entered college a year early.
"It has been a big learning curve," Fabian said. "Getting used to the pitching has been hard. All of the pitches, all of the signs. But at the same time, it's a game we've played since we were little."
Having the ability to contribute like he has early is something that Fabian says has been fulfilling.
"It’s been unreal being able to help this team in any way possible,” Fabian said.
With a 3-0 lead, left fielder Austin Langworthy stepped into the batter's box with an opportunity to bring Fabian home.
Langworthy capitalized.
The Williston, Florida, native ripped one up the middle to give the Gators a 4-0 cushion over LBSU.
"That's kind of been our mantra the last couple years," Coach Kevin O'Sullivan said, referring to the two-out hits that led to the four-run second inning. "That's one of the things we talk about. The inning’s not over until they get the third out, and we had some good at-bats."
LBSU starting pitcher Zak Baayoun faced issues with control for most of the afternoon, giving up six walks and letting a few wild pitches get to the backstop behind the catcher.
The untimely errors allowed UF runners to advance in key situations.
Other than the five runs he allowed in the second and third innings, Baayoun allowed just four hits while throwing 102 pitches.
The Gators started sophomore right-hander Tommy Mace.
Mace earned the victory after pitching in seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits.
The seven strikeouts he accumulated was a new career-high for Florida's Saturday starter.
This game, he seemed to have all of his pitches working.
"I threw all four pitches for strikes tonight,” Mace said. “That's what I was most pleased about.”
The Dirtbags got to him a bit in the fourth, scoring two runs off of two hits. Both teams traded scoreless innings the rest of the game as freshman closer Nolan Crisp picked up the save in the ninth, securing UF's second win of the season.
Follow Evan Lepak on Twitter @evanmplepak and contact him at elepak@alligator.org.
Blake Reese finished with one hit and a run in three at-bats in the Gators 5-2 win over Long Beach State.
