Things were pretty bleak through the first 17 innings of Florida’s series against Kentucky. It lost in Game 1 and trailed entering the final inning of Friday’s Game 2. But a four-run ninth inning from UF forced a rubber match, and Game 3 on Saturday was an all-Gators affair. Florida scored a 9-2 win behind shut-down play from starting pitcher Hunter Barco and the bullpen.
It was arguably the best performance of the season from Barco, whose record is now 8-2 after he earned the win. He barely flinched in his 6.2 innings of work, allowing no runs and just two hits while striking out 10 batters. He didn’t give up a single hit until the fourth inning.
Meanwhile, Florida’s offense managed to score in each of the first three innings. After a triple from Nate Hickey in the first, a Jud Fabian sac-fly got the first run across. With runners on first and second in the second inning, Jacob Young singled to score a run, and a single from Kendrick Calilao in the third scored Kris Armstrong, who reached base on a walk.
After Kentucky’s first hit led to nothing, starting pitcher Zach Lee led off the top of the fifth by walking Calilao, which ended his day. Reliever Alex Degen loaded the bases with a single from Josh Rivera and a fielding error that allowed Cory Acton to reach base. Another sac-fly, this time from Young, brought Calilao across to make it 4-0, Gators.
Barco was finally pulled in the bottom of the seventh after hitting Cam Hill with a pitch, and after walking his first batter, Christian Scott put the inning away with a strikeout. Florida managed some insurance in the eighth when Young led off with an RBI and was brought home by a single from Armstrong.
Scott ran into some trouble in the bottom of the inning, though. Cleanup hitter Coltyn Kessler hit a home run down the left-field line, and on the next at-bat, Oraj Anu sent another one yard to cut Florida’s lead to 5-2. After another walk, Scott was pulled for Jack Leftwich, who didn’t give up any more runs in the frame.
Any chance at a Wildcats comeback ended in the ninth, though. The Gators quickly loaded the bases, and a single from Young (his fourth of the afternoon) brought two of the runs across. Hickey stepped up to the plate next, and a gorgeous double that barely dropped fair in deep right cleared the bases and gave UF an insurmountable seven-run lead.
Leftwich returned for the final half-inning and struck out the first two batters he faced. UK managed to get a runner on base with a single, but a flyout from John Rhodes ended the game and gave Florida a much-needed series win.
The Gators will be back in action on Tuesday night when it takes on Stetson in Deland at 6:30 p.m. They will go for the season sweep of the Hatters in the final match of the four-game series. After that, UF returns to Gainesville for its penultimate SEC series against Georgia.
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