Florida’s 4 homers delivers series win, Gators looking to sweep on Sunday

After getting swept by Tennessee at home a year ago, Florida has a chance to return the favor in Knoxville. The Gators claimed the second game of the series on Friday, 9-3.

The Florida Gators jumped all over the Tennessee Volunteers for the second night in a row and delivered a dominant 9-3 win to win the series.

Florida started scoring right out of the game, mostly thanks to a wild start from Tennessee starter Chase Burns, who is projected as a first-round prospect in the 2024 draft cycle. Burns walked [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] with the bases loaded to score [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] for the first run of the day.

[autotag]Matt Prevesk[/autotag] got the start at designated hitter for the Gators and came up big with a four-RBI night. His first base knock of the night was a ground-rule double to left-center that scored two more. He’d homer in the fifth with a man on to cap off a terrific start, and there’s good reason to believe that Prevesk will contend for a starting outfield spot next season with [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] moving on.

Florida hit three more homers throughout the night. [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] delivered a shot to right-center in the second and [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] and Langford went back-to-back in the fourth. Langford’s cleared the wall in right-center just fine, but Caglianone’s was a no-doubter that went a projected 488 feet.

Florida’s bats quieted down after the fourth, much like in Game 1, which means that Tennessee’s bullpen has something figured out the starting rotation does not.

Fortunately, [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag] was absolutely dealing for UF. He gave up three runs over seven innings of work and struck out nine while walking just the two in the seventh. Florida needed [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] and Waldrep to both be on this weekend to take the series against Tennessee, and the duo did more than deliver.

Florida used lefty [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag] to get through the eighth and ninth. He struck out the side in his first inning of work and added two more before closing out the game.

The Gators will go for their first sweep of the Volunteers since 2011 and the first in Knoxville since 1992. Caglianone is set to pitch for Florida.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gxb4dv2ecnv7fn52gb playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gxb4dv2ecnv7fn52gb/01gxb4dv2ecnv7fn52gb-b15d3c6ba4832f51fd07f639374ba454.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida baseball outlasts Auburn, takes weekend series after late surge

There were times when things seems a bit tumultuous, but never give up on the Gators’ offense!

The outcome of the game was uncertain, to say the least, after the first five innings but Florida baseball eventually exploded against the Auburn Tigers to take the rubber match in the weekend series, 17-8.

[autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] got the start for the Orange and Blue, and for the first time this weekend, managed to blank the Tigers in the opening frame — albeit working out of a jam created by an error and a hit-by-pitch. [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] pushed things forward in the bottom half of the inning, plating three on a bases-loaded, two-out single plus a fielding error that gave the Gators the early lead.

Auburn answered quickly with a solo home run to lead off the second and threatened to score more, but a leaping catch in center field by [autotag]Michael Robertson[/autotag] prevented any further damage. The Gators threatened in the bottom half putting runners on thanks to an HPB and a walk, but Calianone was unable to help his own cause, striking out for the second time to end the threat.

Cags managed to get through the top of the third, but not without a little bit of drama that pushed his pitch count to 65 — not exactly a paragon of efficiency. The Orange and Blue failed to capitalize on a leadoff walk by [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] to put up a goose egg in its half as well.

The Tigers slugged their second home run of the game with one on and no outs in the top of the fourth — on a hit-and-run, no less — to knot things up. A single and a double chased Caglianone off the mound after 81 pitches, bringing high-leverage reliever [autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] in to put out the fire.

He did not put out the fire but did limit the damage to just one more run, giving the visitors their first lead of the day before giving way to [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag]. But the Tigers were not done scoring just yet.

Auburn added its third home run of the day — a two-out, three-run shot — to stretch the lead to 8-3 over Fisher and the Gators. After giving up that dinger, the Tigers managed to follow up with a double but a strikeout stopped the bleeding.

The Orange and Blue showed some life in the bottom of the fifth, plating two runs thanks to an RBI single by [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] followed by a bases-loaded walk that pushed the score to 8-6, but unfortunately, [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag]’s squad could not push any more home.

Auburn went down 1-2-3 in the top of the sixth, giving way to a two-run inning for the Gators that began with a bases-loaded walk to Luke Heyman and a subsequent sacrifice fly by Langford that tied the game; a Matt Prevesk strikeout ended the threat.

[autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag], who took over to start the sixth, threw four straight clean innings with four strikeouts. His efforts in the seventh set the table for a two-RBI single from Caglianone in the seventh to reclaim the lead — a lead that would be padded to the tune of a 12-8 score by the end of the frame. A diving catch by Auburn’s centerfielder saved a couple of runs to end the inning.

The scoring continued into the bottom of the eighth, with the Gators adding a whopping five runs that included a grand slam to put the score on the verge of mercy-rule territory. The Tigers failed to respond, resulting in a 17-8 win for the Orange and Blue, with Slater earning the win.

Next up for Florida are the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats who travel to Gainesville to take on the Gators on Tuesday. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. EDT and the game can be followed either on the SEC Network+ or ESPN 98.1FM/850AM WRUF.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gx16n1qhchjpk5mdcg playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gx16n1qhchjpk5mdcg/01gx16n1qhchjpk5mdcg-e5d28c0a3bfc629aaa794669a96fe7bd.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida baseball completes comeback against FSU

The Florida Gators slowly chipped away at Florida State’s lead all night until they finally came up big with a five-run eighth inning that decided the game.

The Florida Gators dug themselves into an early hole Tuesday night against Florida State, but a five-run eighth inning secured a 9-5 win for UF against its bitter rival.

Florida’s pitching staff was well-rested, but a midweek game between SEC series isn’t the time to use up the top arms on the club. The Gators threw right-hander [autotag]Tyler Nesbitt[/autotag], who made it through 3 and 2/3 innings before getting the hook from Kevin O’Sullivan.

Nesbitt wasn’t great, but some of the runs on his record came after he was out fo the game. He left a pair of runners on in the fourth that [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag] couldn’t stop from scoring, which led to a four-run (three earned) day for Nesbitt. It’s the second time in as many games that Fisher has struggled to work his left-lefty matchup, and he allowed all three batters he faced on Tuesday to reach base.

[autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] finally got Florida out of the fourth inning and struck out two in the fifth, but he allowed two base runners to get on. Left-hander [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] came in and got the ground out the team needed, and that’s when the Gators’ pitching staff settled in.

Abner struck out the side in the sixth and seventh while the team slowly chipped away at the deficit. He’d end up earning the win after Florida came through big in the eighth.

[autotag]Matt Prevesk[/autotag] had the biggest at-bat of the night, coming up to pinch hit with the bases loaded and only 10 plate appearances on the year. He came through and delivered the tying run through the left side. It was one of six singles in the inning, four of which scored runs.

[autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] was in the mix during that rally with his fourth hit and second and third RBIs of the night. Josh Rivera was the only other Gator with multiple hits and runs batted in, finishing the night with two of each.

[autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] closed things out but didn’t earn a save because Florida was up by four and he came in with no runners on.

Abner, Ficarrotta and Neely look really good and might be the backbone of the bullpen moving forward. If [autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] and Cade Fisher can rejoin that group, Florida will remain a legitimate threat to beat any team this season.

[autotag]Dale Thomas[/autotag] started in left field for [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], but it looks like he’s nearing a return after minor surgery. Kevin O’Sullivan is going to take his time bringing back his top bat, and Florida doing alright without him so far.

Florida improves to 19-4 on the season and is at Ole Miss this weekend from Friday to Sunday for the team’s first series on the road. It’s a big test for the third-ranked club in the nation.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gvdq8eqdb03x5mg83v playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gvdq8eqdb03x5mg83v/01gvdq8eqdb03x5mg83v-ce81f56192edd4f52d0b1f3b0a471855.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Gators walk it off against Alabama to claim Game 1 of double-header, series

Josh Rivera didn’t need to hit another big fly to end things Friday afternoon against the Alabama Crimson Tide. A tapper between the plate and mound was enough for Florida to claim the game and series.

The Florida Gators trailed the Alabama Crimson Tide all afternoon in the first game of a doubleheader, but the offense continued to chip away until [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] finally delivered a walk-off infield single to put UF on to, 8-7.

Florida entered the bottom of the ninth down one, but third baseman [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] quickly tied things up with a solo home run to left field. [autotag]Michael Robertson[/autotag] singled up the middle to give the Gators their fastest runner on base with no outs, and [autotag]Cade Kurland[/autotag] turned his back on an inside pitch to take first and move him over.

[autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag], who started the afternoon on the mound for Florida, had his shot to come through, but he didn’t quite make it happen. A fielder’s choice moved Robertson over to third, though, which was crucial to the game-ending play.

Rivera was coming off a strikeout to freshman Riley Quick in his last at-bat and wasn’t seeing the ball well. He made weak contact that essentially served as a swinging bunt, and Quick couldn’t get to the ball in time before Robertson slid into home.

Florida might be known as a home-run hitting team, but it was small ball that earned them the win at the end on Friday.

Caglianone didn’t have his best stuff on the mound. His fastball was a little flat and it led to a strong day for Alabama’s power hitters, especially lefty clean-up hitter Drew Williamson. He got things started early with a three-run opposite-field home run in the first inning off a Caglianone 97 mph fastball and doubled in a run in the fifth off the slider that usually buckles left-handed hitters. Credit him for being brushed up on the scouting report to win the lefty-on-lefty matchup.

Williamson also drove in a fourth run in the seventh off freshman [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag], so that might be the last time Kevin O’Sullivan turns to a lefty to get him. Fisher was the second Gators reliever of the game. [autotag]Nick Ficarotta[/autotag] came in for the sixth after five innings from Caglianone, but he got pulled after running into trouble in the next frame.

[autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag] ended up closing out the seventh as the third reliever of the night, and [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] came in for him to get the last out of the eight. Abner pitched the ninth, but pitch counts were kept low enough to use some of these arms again in the second game of the doubleheader. Fisher only threw three pitches.

Florida kept pace with Alabama for most of the night. [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] answered Williamson’s three-run home run with one of his own in the bottom of the first to tie things up, and UF scored a run in each of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings.

Kurland hit his second home run in as many games against the SEC and brought his total up to seven on the year — that’s more than [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] — Rivera[/autotag] also hit his ninth homer of the year and [autotag]Michael Robertson[/autotag] singled in the run in the seventh.

One of Florida’s biggest advantages is that it has a good enough offense to stay in any game, and that was on full display Friday. Chipping away slowly until the very end works for this club, even if it’s not the way they usually have to play. It’s a good sign to see this kind of fight early on, and it should come in handy once the playoffs begin.

Top Performers

Riopelle: 2-4, HR (3), 2B; 3 RBI

Rivera: 3-5, HR (9); 2 RBI

Kurland: 2-3, HR (7), 2 HBP; RBI

Abner: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gvdq8eqdb03x5mg83v playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gvdq8eqdb03x5mg83v/01gvdq8eqdb03x5mg83v-ce81f56192edd4f52d0b1f3b0a471855.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Key takeaways from Florida’s strong start ahead of SEC play

Florida is getting ready to begin SEC play on the diamond. Here’s what we learned about the team during non-conference play.

Florida baseball is 16-3, ranked fifth overall in the country and riding a seven-game winning streak heading into conference play, but everything isn’t perfect in Gainesville after a strong start to 2023.

Those three losses all have a common denominator, an implosion from the bullpen, and it’s no secret that relief depth is Florida’s weak point. Kevin O’Sullivan has been figuring out which members of the ‘pen he can trust, and there are fewer names on the list than he would like.

Still, starting pitching and hitting are two very strong areas for the Gators, so they’ll be in most games they play in. The weekend rotation has been particularly strong for UF this year, and [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] has made a seamless transition as a two-way player. In front of him are two potential first-round picks, [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] and [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag], that have only gotten better as the season’s carried on.

The injury bug did bite the Gators last week, but most of the team should be healthy for the start of SEC play on Thursday against No. 24 Alabama. Florida has played just one series against a ranked opponent this season against Miami. UF took two of three games and ended the weekend with a mercy-rule win.

Things look good for Florida with conference play set to begin, but the Gators still have to get the job done on the field. Here’s a look at what we’ve learned about the team over the first 19 games of the season.

Florida baseball survives surprising test from Siena

Florida’s first game in a series against the Siena Saints didn’t go as expected, but the Gators still came out on top on Friday night.

Very few expected No. 6 Florida and Siena to be tied heading into the sixth inning on Friday, but that’s exactly where the two teams found themselves after a 90-minute rain delay prevented the game from starting on time.

The Saints entered the game with an overall record of 2-10 and just one player hitting .300 or better, but right-hander Arlo Marynczak held the Gators to just two runs across five innings of work.

Florida hit Marynczak fine. He ended the night giving with seven hits allowed and two walks, but the Gators just couldn’t score against him after plating a run in each of the first two innings.

The second inning could have been much bigger for Florida as [autotag]Wyatt Langford [/autotag]came up with the bases loaded and one out, but Marynczak got him to foul out and then induced a pop-up from [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag].

Florida’s top two hitters are supposed to come through in a situation like that, especially against a team such as Siena, and it’s the first time fans have seen them fail in 2023.

The Gators had another bases-loaded opportunity in the bottom of the seventh but again failed to come through.[autotag]Tyler Shelnut[/autotag] struck out and [autotag]Matt Prevesk[/autotag], who entered the game for [autotag]Luke Heyman[/autotag] after a presumed injury to his hamstring, flew out to strand three baserunners.

[autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] also left the game in the sixth inning; a foul ball hit off him earlier in the game, but there was no official word on why he left.

Shelnut did contribute earlier in the game, though, hitting a go-ahead home run in the sixth inning off of left-handed reliever Billy Rozakis. Noah Rodriguez came in next and was the one to get out of the second bases-loaded jam of the night.

Fortunately, Florida’s bullpen didn’t implode and held on to a one-run lead after [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] finished off four scoreless innings.

It wasn’t Sproat’s best day. He couldn’t locate his fastball, and his slider was off too. He gave up three hits and three walks while striking out seven and hitting two batters.

[autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag] was first out of the bullpen for Florida. He struck out five through two innings but also gave up a pair of runs, only one of which was earned. The Gators committed two errors on Friday night, which is unusually sloppy for this team.

[autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] was next out of the bullpen. He allowed just two hits through two scoreless innings while striking out a pair, and then [autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] came in to shut the door.

Neely struck out each of the first two batters he faced but gave up a single to Matt Livingston before getting out No. 3 to end the inning.

The silver lining here is that Florida’s bullpen shined for perhaps the first time this season, but the lack of offense was unexpected, to say the least.

If Florida struggles to put runs on the board again on Saturday, it might be something to get worried about. Conference play starts in less than a week, and Florida needs to be at its best.

The Gators and Saints go again on Saturday at 4 p.m. EST.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1/01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1-2c138d7bb2195f064f6a8b073f8e58c5.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida takes series against Miami by mercy rule with walk off home run

Jac Caglianone was dominant on the mound as Florida clobbered its way to a mercy-rule victory over Miami on Sunday to claim the regular season series.

Florida claimed its third series victory to start the season on Sunday with a 14-4 win over the No. 22 Miami Hurricanes that only needed eight innings to finish.

Florida got the scoring going early, plating four runs in each of the first two frames and knocking out Miami’s starter, Alejandro Rosario, after just 1 1/3 innings. [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag], [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag], [autotag]Michael Robertson[/autotag] and [autotag]Deric Fabian[/autotag] hit four consecutive singles to plate the runs in the first, and Riopelle delivered again in the second with a grand slam off Hurricanes reliever Carlos Lequerica.

[autotag]Cade Kurland[/autotag] drove in a ninth run in the third inning, but Florida’s offense slowed down until the final inning of the ball game.

Meanwhile, [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] was once again dominant on the mound. He struck out eight over six innings, allowing just one run on four hits and a walk. Caglianone only really struggled in the fourth, giving up a run on a Zach Levenson sacrifice fly that scored Edgardo Villegas.

Caglianone sat 96 mph with his fastball and topped out at 99 mph. His slider was also working, coming in the low 80s with good horizontal movement. He now boasts a 2.08 ERA through 17 1/3 inning and has 25 strikeouts (13.0 K/9) while holding opposing batters to a .131 average.

[autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] was tasked with a three-frame save in relief of Caglianone, but he only made it through 1 1/3 innings. Villegas began the scoring in the eighth with an RBI double, and Yohandy Morales delivered his third hit of the night immediately after to add another run. Levenson doubled to score Morales and advance CJ Kayfus to third, and Kevin O’Sullivan went to the bullpen once again.

Freshman left-hander [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag] got the call after pitching three perfect innings on Friday, and he got out of the jam immediately thanks to an amazing double play from shortstop [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag].

Rivera came up big in the bottom of the eighth too, hitting a solo home run to extend the lead back to eight. It was one of three big flies for Florida during the inning, as [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] hit a two-run homer earlier in the inning and Ty Evans walked it off with a two-run shot off of Sebastian Perez.

Caglianone continues to be a sensation for Florida on Sundays and led the team to a win despite not getting a hit in this one.

“I’ve been doing this my whole life,” Caglianone said after the game. “I knew coming into this that eventually I’d end up going back to being a two-way and everything like that. Coach did a great job just letting me focus on the pitching aspect of things because it was my first outing. And then slowly easing back into everything, it’s a grind for sure but it’s nothing I can’t handle.”

Florida is back at it against FAU on Tuesday and Wednesday for a midweek series at Condron Family Ballpark.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1/01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1-2c138d7bb2195f064f6a8b073f8e58c5.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

PHOTOS: Highlights from Florida baseball’s Game 1 win over Miami

Get a gander at some of the top highlights from Friday night’s slugfest at Condron Family Ballpark.

Things started slowly for Florida baseball on Friday night against its visitors, the No. 22 Miami Hurricanes, but once the offense got going the Gators never looked back, slugging their way to a 10-4 win in the series opener.

Three Gators combined for four home runs, including a pair from top draft prospect [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] who had been quiet for the most part this season so far. Starter [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] was not quite at his best, but fortunately, he was still good enough to earn the win. [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag] relieved him and earned a three-inning save thanks to a trio of clean frames.

Take a look below at a series of photographic highlights from Florida baseball’s opening game victory on Friday night over the visiting Miami Hurricanes.

 

Wyatt Langford leads Florida over Miami in Game 1 of weekend series

Things got off to a bad start, but Florida eventually overpowered Miami on Friday night and claimed the first game of the weekend series.

Florida got off to a slow start against the Miami Hurricanes on Friday night, but the Gators never looked back once the offense got going and powered the team to a 10-4 victory in Game 1 of the series.

Three Gators combined for four home runs on the night, including a pair from [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] who has been waiting for the right game to make some noise. Langford’s first came in the bottom of the first inning and helped chip away at an early 3-0 Miami lead. The second came in the sixth to add to a three-run lead. He also drove in a run in the fourth on a double to finish the night with a team-high three RBIs.

[autotag]Richie Schiekofer[/autotag], who pinch hit for [autotag]Dale Thomas[/autotag] in the sixth, also homered in the inning, and [autotag]Cade Kurland[/autotag] hit a two-run shot to left field in the eighth to make bring the lead up to six. Kurland is now on a nine-game hitting streak to begin his collegiate career.

[autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] and [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] drove in runs on back-to-back singles in the third, and [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] also drove in a run in the fourth.

With all the scoring happening throughout the night, it’s hard to believe that things looked grim at one point for Florida, but right-hander [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] did not get off to his best start. Despite pumping 100 mph in the first inning, Sproat gave up an early three-run home run to Miami’s best hitter, Yohandy Morales.

Sproat bounced back after the Morales big fly and lasted six innings for the Gators without giving up another run. He finished the night with nine strikeouts and four walks. Another run did score in the sixth while Sproat was still in, but it didn’t count against his record because of an error that lead off the inning.

The home run makes an otherwise strong start look average, but there’s no reason to worry about Sproat. He’s figuring out the consistency aspect of his game still, but the week-to-week improvements have been encouraging. The resiliency he showed today should get him a longer leash in big games.

Once Sproat came out of the game, Kevin O’Sullivan turned to freshman left-hander [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag], and the kid absolutely dominated. Fisher closed out the game for Florida, pitching three perfect innings and earning the save. The cherry on top: Fisher struck out Morales in the seventh to close out the inning.

Miami is not a bad team by any means, but Florida didn’t look particularly challenged after the first inning. Saturday’s matchup may be a bit different. The Hurricanes are throwing Karson Ligon, who has a 0.66 ERA, and Florida’s [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag] is coming off a 13-strikeout game against Cincinnati.

First pitch is set for 2 p.m. on Saturday at Condron Ballpark in Gainesville.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1/01gse5agk1vyyxhvp4h1-2c138d7bb2195f064f6a8b073f8e58c5.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida’s 8 home runs help finish off sweep of Cincinnati

The Gators are breaking records at the plate and sweeping opponents every weekend. It’s great to have baseball back.

The long ball led Florida to its second sweep of the season on Sunday as the Gators took down the Cincinnati Bearcats, 13-7.

UF had five players combine for a school-record eight home runs over the afternoon, which is more than half of what the team’s season total was entering the game (12). [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] started on the mound for Florida and hit a pair of dingers. He didn’t find his rhythm at the plate after the bullpen took over, but this was his first time hitting and pitching in the same game at the college level.

On the mound, things went alright for Caglianone. He struggled early and gave up a run in the first after hitting a batter, walking another and giving up a single. He got a double-play ball that could have gotten him out of the inning but it turned into an error instead.

Caglianone settled down and collected six strikeouts through 4 2/3 innings of work while surrendering three earned runs on four walks, two hits, and a hit batter. Many of the blemishes on his final stat line came in the fifth when he walked three and was pulled from the game.

[autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] didn’t help much in relief, hitting a batter and walking another to tack on two runs to Caglianone’s record. It’s been a rough start to the season for Purnell, and [autotag]Cade Fisher[/autotag] had to take over to get out of the fifth.

Chase Hopewell gave Cincinnati its best start of the weekend, holding Florida to just three runs through four innings. The only Gator that really got to him was [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag], but he did so for big damage and brought in three on a pair of home runs in the second and fourth innings.

Florida jumped all over Cincinnati’s bullpen, though. Mitch White limited the damage in the fifth but still allowed a two-run home run from Caglianone. Jackson Murphy fell apart in the sixth, though. He gave up back-to-back jacks to [autotag]Luke Heyman[/autotag] and [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] to start the inning off and then got pulled after Caglianone hit his second two-run homer in as many innings.

The Gators tacked on four more in the eighth on a solo shot from [autotag]Cade Kurland[/autotag] and Caglianone’s third homer of the day. Rivera brought in BT Riopelle and scored himself on a Little League home run that an error in right field enabled, and that ended the scoring for Florida on the day. It might not be a mercy rule win, but Kevin O’Sullivan will probably take it all the same.

[autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] got an eight-out save for Florida after taking an offer for Fisher with two outs down in the seventh. He struck out three and gave up a two-run home run in the ninth, but it was a job well done by Florida’s unique closer. Fisher claimed the win, and the Gatorts have their second sweep of the year in as many weeks.

Florida takes on Jacksonville Tuesday in the away game of another midweek home-and-home series. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. EST.

Game Notes

  • Wyatt Langford had a great series but was relatively quiet today going 0 for 1 with two runs, two walks and two hit by pitches.
  • Cade Kurland put together his sixth multi-hit game of the season in as many starts. The freshman is playing well beyond his experience level early on.
  • Florida’s eight home runs are the most in a single game in program history.
  • Caglianone’s three homers put him tied with the NCAA leader in home runs coming into the day, Wake Forest’s Adame Cecere.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1369]

[mm-video type=video id=01gt5e60bzfe4mmajmnt playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gt5e60bzfe4mmajmnt/01gt5e60bzfe4mmajmnt-3fac49fdb00265554e0c495596851459.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.