The home run.
It’s the greatest equalizer in the game of softball.
On Saturday night, a walk-off blast from freshman outfielder Jordan Matthews punched the No. 4 Florida Gators’ ticket to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series.
Yet, giving up the long ball has also been one of UF’s greatest weaknesses. It was evident Saturday when Texas A&M first baseman Tori Vidales knocked a two-run shot over the right-field fence just a half-inning before Matthews’ bomb. Vidales also scorched a three-run game-winner against Florida on Friday to help the Aggies to a 5-4 victory.
And on March 16, in the first game of a series at the University of Georgia, junior pitcher Kelly Barnhill relinquished three-straight solo homers to the Bulldogs in the top of the first inning. She gave up five in all of the 2017 season.
Now, Barnhill and the Gators (55-9) will face off with No. 9 UGA once more in the opening match of the double-elimination World Series.
The right-hander gave up four home runs in two starts against Georgia (48-11), both of which lasted only two innings. Senior pitcher Aleshia Ocasio gave up a two-run, walk-off jack to junior shortstop Alyssa DiCarlo on March 16, as well.
For the campaign, Barnhill has allowed 18 softballs to leave the park, while Ocasio has done so 13 times. Both tallies are more than the team total of 11 from last season. Ocasio also gave up a two-out, walk-off home run in the Gainesville Super Regional in 2016, the last time UF and UGA squared off in NCAA play.
DiCarlo and sophomore Justice Milz lead the Bulldogs into Thursday’s showdown with 20 and 14 home runs, respectively. DiCarlo went yard three times against the Gators when the two teams met in Athens and went 4 for 10 at the plate with six RBIs for the weekend. Milz had three quiet games versus Florida, only posting one hit in 10 at-bats.
However, the Bulldogs will be without perhaps their greatest asset, senior pitcher Brittany Gray. She sustained a bicep injury in practice on April 9 and underwent season-ending surgery. Gray recorded a national-best 0.62 ERA during her 102.1 innings of action in 2018.
During the only series UF lost this season, she picked up two wins over nine innings. In that period of work, Gray allowed 10 hits and two earned runs to Florida batters. The only other pitcher UGA used in the series was junior Kylie Bass.
Bass also had two outings against the Gators. She threw 10 innings and gave up three earned runs on eight hits. She’s put together a solid 2.36 ERA for the season and has held opponents to a 0.185 batting average.
Florida will likely see sophomore pitcher Mary Wilson Avant, who leads Georgia with 30 appearances this season and holds the second-lowest ERA on the team (2.13) behind Gray. She’s thrown seven shutouts on the season.
UF also faces potential matchups with No. 8 Florida State and No. 2 UCLA, as both teams are in the same bracket as the Gators and the Bulldogs.
You can follow Mark Stine on Twitter @mstinejr or contact him at mstine@alligator.org.
Senior third baseman Nicole DeWitt (left) and junior right fielder Amanda Lorenz (right) celebrate after scoring runs against Texas A&M on Friday. They and the No. 4 Gators will face No. 9 Georgia at the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
