Florida softball heading to WCWS after beating Baylor in Super Regionals

Florida outlasted Baylor in a brutal battle on Sunday to reach the Women’s College World Series.

It took the full three games but Florida’s softball team is heading to the Women’s College World Series for the 12th time in program history and first since the 2022 season after defeating the Baylor Bears in the Gainesville Super Regionals on Sunday, 5-3.

[autotag]Keagan Rothrock[/autotag] pitched her second-straight complete game while [autotag]Mia Williams[/autotag] hit an early two-run homer to help the Gators fight off a pesky Baylor team that reached the semifinals as an at-large bid.

Florida jumped out to an early lead in this one, scoring a trio of runs in the bottom of the first inning; the two teams then matched one-run efforts in the next frame while putting up goose eggs in the third and fourth innings. Baylor threatened with a run in the top of the fifth, but Florida answered in the bottom sixth and ultimately closed the door.

The Orange and Blue improved to 25-12 in NCAA Super Regional play and 6-1 in Super Regional Game 3s. Looking ahead to the championships, UF holds an overall record of 27-20 (.574) in Oklahoma City and will be looking for its third national title.

Florida will face fifth-seeded Oklahoma State in the WCWS opener on Thursday, May 30, with the start time still to be determined. The Cowgirls defeated the Gators 3-0 in a regular-season meeting on Feb. 19 in Gainesville.

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Highlights from Florida softball’s SEC Tournament Championship win

Here are the highlights from Florida’s record-setting SEC Tournament title win.

Florida softball prevailed over the Missouri Tigers, 6-1, on Saturday to earn its sixth Southeastern Conference Tournament title in program history, tying the program for the most in league history while giving head coach Tim Walton the most ever in the SEC.

The Gators’ bats were big in this one, with five of their six runs coming on home runs by [autotag]Mia Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Skylar Wallace[/autotag]. Keagan Rothrock tossed her second consecutive complete-game performance to give her team the edge from the pitcher’s circle.

The program improved its SEC Tournament record to 40-29 after a 3-0 sweep this year. This was also Florida’s 10th SEC Tournament Championship game appearance, which ranks second most in league history behind the LSU Tigers‘ 11 appearances.

Florida softball earns SEC Tournament title over Missouri Tigers

The Gators proved to be the best team in the SEC this weekend at the tournament.

Florida softball earned its sixth Southeastern Conference Tournament title on Sunday with a 6-1 win over the Missouri Tigers at Jane B. Moore Field in Auburn, Alabama. The tournament victory ties the Gators for the best in the league and gives head coach [autotag]Tim Walton[/autotag] the most of any skipper in SEC history.

The Orange and Blue entered the tournament as a No. 2 seed while Mizzou was a No. 5 seed coming in. The seedings played out as expected in the finals as Florida simply had too much for Missouri.

Walton’s team scored five of their six runs via the long ball, with [autotag]Skylar Wallace[/autotag] and [autotag]Mia Williams[/autotag] both going deep in this one. Right-handed pitcher Keagan Rothrock tossed her second consecutive complete-game performance to steady the Gators in the circle.

The program improved its SEC Tournament record to 40-29 after a 3-0 sweep this year. This was also Florida’s 10th SEC Tournament Championship game appearance, which ranks second most in league history behind the LSU Tigers‘ 11 appearances.

Highlights from Florida softball’s SEC Tournament Championship win

The Gators now await their placement in the NCAA Division I Softball Championship bracket during the Selection Show that will air live Sunday on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. ET.

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