After sweeping South Carolina at home this past weekend, Florida’s softball team will hit the diamond again tonight at 6 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium to take on Florida A&M.
The No. 5 Gators (37-7, 12-3 SEC) are in first place in the SEC standings after their trio of victories over the Gamecocks, while the Rattlers (19-23, 11-1 MEAC) are coming off a recent sweep of their own against Savannah State.
As Florida enters the latter part of its schedule, with just 11 games left in the regular season, each contest is a step toward the ultimate goal: the Women’s College World Series.
So far this season, the Gators have heavily relied on the offensive efforts of left fielder Amanda Lorenz and third baseman Nicole DeWitt.
Both players are in the top three on Florida’s roster in batting average, at-bats, runs, hits, RBIs and slugging percentage.
DeWitt helped the Gators capture the series sweep over the Gamecocks in Saturday’s doubleheader, sending a walk-off home run over the wall in center field in the second game of the day.
“She’s special,” Lorenz said about DeWitt. “She’s a huge impact and a game changer.”
Coach Tim Walton agrees with Lorenz.
“The career that (DeWitt) has had, she probably flies under the radar more than anybody we’ve ever had,” he said in a release after Saturday’s doubleheader. “She’s a gamer.”
DeWitt, a senior, has logged 41 hits and 41 runs and has started every game this season. She has also recorded 38 RBIs and 10 home runs.
Lorenz is looking for a hot streak of her own as the team has three more SEC series and two non-conference games on the remainder of its regular-season schedule.
The junior from Moorpark, California, has reached base in every game this season, bringing her career mark to 163 of 170 games.
Meanwhile, Florida has been led In the circle by junior pitcher Kelly Barnhill.
The Marietta, Georgia, native was selected as this week’s SEC Pitcher of the Week for the ninth time in her career and the fourth time this season.
Barnhill (19-1) limited the Gamecocks’ offense to a pair of hits and one run over a 14-inning stretch this past weekend. She also logged her ninth shutout of the season and the 28th of her career with 21 strikeouts in the two contests.
The Rattlers will most likely depend on Kyaira Brown. The sophomore is one of three pitchers on the team but has the most experience overall in the circle.
Brown (11-9) holds an ERA of 2.80 with 92 strikeouts and 79 runs allowed.
“We’ve got to be on top of our A-game,” Walton said. “Everybody that we’ve played midweek has come at us with everything they’ve got and I expect nothing less from them (Wednesday).”
Follow Mari Faiello on Twitter @faiello_mari and contact her at mfaiello@alligator.org.
Florida pitcher Kelly Barnhill is 19-1 this season and was recently selected as SEC Pitcher of the Week.
