After the Gators put up 13 runs in their win over Texas A&M on Thursday night, Friday’s Game 2 proved to be a much lower-scoring affair. Just four total runs were scored as both team’s starting pitchers played exceedingly well. But Florida prevailed in a 3-1 ballgame, and it secured a victory in its first SEC series of the game.
Jack Leftwich earned his fourth win of the season on the bump, tossing seven impressive innings to match Tommy Mace‘s Thursday total. He allowed just three hits and one run in that span while striking out six Aggies batters.
TAMU starter Bryce Miller had a good game in his own right, avoiding the loss in a 5.2 inning outing in which he allowed five hits but just one run. Between the two, only three hits were allowed in the first three innings.
Miller was the first to slip up, though, as he gave up an RBI single to Sterlin Thompson in the bottom of the fourth that got the Gators on the scoreboard. The Aggies managed to respond in the sixth, as Will Frizzell managed to hit one out of the park off Leftwich to tie the game, his only major mistake of the game.
Mac Guscette retook the lead for UF in the bottom of the seventh with an RBI single, ending the night of reliever Chandler Jozwiak, who was credited with the loss.
The bases were loaded for his replacement, Alex Magers, and though Florida scored one run out of a double-play, he averted most of the danger. But the Gators had a 3-1 lead, and against Christian Scott, who pitched the rest of way and earned the save, Texas A&M couldn’t get anything going.
Scott allowed two hits with two strikeouts in his two innings of work, and he closed out a much-needed series win after a mediocre start to the season. The Gators will go for the series sweep of the Aggies on Saturday at 1 p.m. EDT.
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