Tag: Phillip Abner

Florida falls short in SEC Tournament championship game against Tennessee

The Vols were clearly the better team, but Florida’s run to the SEC Tournament championship game had the team in much better spirits heading into regionals.

Florida fell just short of winning it all in Hoover, Alabama, on Sunday losing to the Tennesee Volunteers, 8-5, in the final round of the SEC Tournament.

The Gators threw [autotag]Carsten Finnvold[/autotag], a freshman out of American Heritage Del Ray in Palm Beach County, Florida, and he kept Tennessee quiet through four innings. His low-speed fastball kept the Volunteers off balance and quiet through four innings, but the No. 1 team in the country got going in the fifth.

[autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] sent a ball to first that [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] couldn’t snag to put a runner on second with no outs. Blake Burke singled Evan Russell over to second and Finnvold got Cortland Lawson swinging. Seth Stephenson bunted for an RBI-base hit on a ball that Finnvold could’ve made a play on if he wasn’t tripped up by his own team. Luc Lipcius took strike three looking for out two in the inning.

[autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] decided to walk the bases loaded for Tennessee’s No. 4 hitter Drew Gilbert and it almost paid off. Finnvold got a fly ball to left field, but [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] came in on the ball and let it go over his head to clear the bases. Four runs were scored in the inning and none of them were earned for Finnvold.

[autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] came in to get out of the inning, but he’d get back into trouble in the sixth. The Vols put up a three-spot on the Gators’ best reliever and took a commanding 7-0 lead. [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] pitched the eighth for UF without much trouble. Only a Stephenson single threatened throughout the inning.

[autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] finally broke through in the bottom of the eighth with a two-run shot against Ben Joyce, who was throwing over 100 mph. Joyce was Tennessee’s fourth pitcher of the night after lefty Camden Sewell gave the Vols a five-inning start. Will Mabrey and Mark McLaughlin were first out of the bullpen, then Joyce and Zander Sechrist, and finally Kirby Connell finished it up through eight.

The Gators added one more run on a two-out [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] single, but [autotag]Mac Guscette[/autotag] hit a weak grounder to third for an easy tag out of Jud Fabian.

Gilbert got ahold of another one in the ninth and made it 8-3 with a solo shot. Lipscomb doubled and knocked Abner out of the game for [autotag]Tyler Nesbitt[/autotag]. Russell almost took another ball out, but Langford got it on the warning track.

Redmond Walsh finished it off for the Volunteers. Pinch hitter Kendrick Calilao popped up on a 2-2 count into foul territory for the first out of the inning. Langford doubled to start the final push, and [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] doubled him home.

Riopelle moved Thomspon over to third, and [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] drove him in on an error by the second baseman who was shifted out of position. [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] gave a ball a ride, but the left fielder tracked it down and Florida’s rally fell short. It’s a disappointing end to a great run by the Gators, especially considering four of Tennessee’s runs came unearned.

Going into the tournament, Florida’s postseason hopes looked bleak. A win or two in the regional round seemed to be the best possible outcome, but this SEC Tournament run has Florida in the conversation to host a regional. The NCAA will announce hosts at 8:30 p.m. EDT Sunday night.

[mm-video type=video id=01g2tjy72gxzzkgtemb2 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g2tjy72gxzzkgtemb2/01g2tjy72gxzzkgtemb2-58e19f3de57855c69ec31ad89976581f.jpg]

[lawrence-related id=84717,84665,84627,84577,84425]

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

Let us know your thoughts and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today!

Florida baseball mercy ruled in SEC Tournament by Texas A&M

The bad news: Florida got mercy-ruled by Texas A&M in the postseason
The good news: We only had to watch seven innings of ugly baseball

The Florida Gators baseball team was embarrassed in the SEC Tournament Thursday by Texas A&M. The Aggies won 10-0 thanks to a 7-run sixth inning.

Freshman [autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] got the start for the Gators, but he looked far from the pitcher that went seven scoreless innings last week against South Carolina with 10 strikeouts. Getting ahead of batters was an issue all night and eventually, Neely’s lack of control led to a two-run shot from Trey Werner in the third.

During a mid-game interview, head coach [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] said that he liked what he saw from Neely early on, but things would just go from bad to worse. He’d escape the fourth despite giving up a single, walk and double in the inning thanks to a double play to get the leadoff baserunner.

Offensively, Florida was at its worst. Out ahead of a pitcher who came into the game with a 6.10 ERA, the Gators struck out seven times to Aggies starter Micah Dallas. [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] almost led things off with a leadoff dinger, but Jordan Thompson caught the ball and held onto it as he slammed into the centerfield wall. After that, Florida’s bats looked lost at the plate aside from a [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] single in the second.

A bit of trouble came in the third after [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] reached on an error from shortstop Kole Kaler and [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] stayed in the box to take a ball off the elbow, bringing up [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] to the plate. The junior saw nine pitches in the at-bat but ultimately hit a grounder right to Werner at third for the unassisted final out of the inning.

“(Dallas) has done a really nice job locating his breaking ball,” Texas A&M head coach Jim Schlossnagle said. “We got fortunate on the first pitch of the game that that ball stayed in the ballpark. He hurt himself with a few baserunners there, but he made a really nice pitch to Fabian. He’s a tough hitter.”

Sully met with his team before the fifth, but it didn’t change much. Dallas struck out two to close out his final inning of the day in a 1-2-3 fashion. Neely’s day also ended in the fifth, but it came in the middle of an inning after a third run scored on a Jack Moss single. In came [autotag]Jameson Fisher[/autotag] to get the final out of the frame.

Joseph Menefee picked up right where Dallas left off in the sixth, baffling the UF hitters. Langford struck out swinging, Thompson struck out looking and Fabian went do hacking. Pain.

Then, the floodgates opened up. The Aggies put together a 7-spot in the inning they’ve done the most damage all year. According to the SEC Network broadcast, Texas A&M has outscored opponents 64-15 in the sixth inning. To the tune of three homers, TAMU went up 10-0 and put the tournament mercy rule into play. [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] and [autotag]Tyler Nesbitt[/autotag] pitched in relief of Jameson in the inning.

The Gators went down 1-2-3 in the top of the seventh, but the game did end in some controversy. Caglianone grounded out on a ball that he never left the box for because he thought it hit his foot. The umpires ruled it fair and the game ended with the play being non-reviewable.

That sets up a matchup with the Arkansas Razorbacks to open Friday for the Gators. Florida did take two of three against Arkansas during the regular season, but the team will be on its third pitcher coming off a blowout loss. That’s not an ideal situation to go into staring down elimination.

[mm-video type=video id=01g40pw6g5gcckmvkbdp playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g40pw6g5gcckmvkbdp/01g40pw6g5gcckmvkbdp-1143e36c4239eb10ec343b4aa0aa6d96.jpg]

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

Let us know your thoughts and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today!

Series Preview: Gators baseball travels to Missouri for weekend series

A sweep this weekend against Mizzou would put the Gators back over .500 in conference play.

Florida baseball has a chance to get back above .500 in conference play this weekend with a three-game series in Columbia against the Missouri Tigers. UF needs a sweep to get it done and history is in the team’s favor after winning 15-straight against Mizzou.

[autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag] has been shut down for the year, but the duo of [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] and [autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] has served the Gators well in his absence. Both are better at keeping opponents subdued than their respective counterparts on the Tigers, so the games could get fairly lopsided if the numbers prove true.

Offensively, Florida seems to be hitting its stride after shaking up the top of the order against Kentucky. The top of the order now goes [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] and [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag]. Fabian is the only one who is in the same spot as he was when he started the season, and the other two are hitting over .350 since the switch. The trio of Fabian, Langford and Riopelle also leads the nation with a combined 49 homers.

The bullpen has also seen some improvement in recent weeks with the additions of guys like [autotag]Fisher Jameson[/autotag] to mainstays like [autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag] and [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] who have got it done all season.

Florida could be peaking at the right time, but they’ll need to take this series convincingly to get to where they want to be with only one more weekend left in the regular season.

6-run ninth inning secures series win for Florida over Mississippi State

Florida avoided extra innings on Saturday with a six-run ninth against Mississippi State to claim the series.

Florida baseball broke a close game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs wide open in the ninth inning on Saturday with a six-run barrage to win a 9-3 ballgame.

After driving in six runs in the series opener on Friday, catcher [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] got things going early once again for the Gators with a sacrifice fly to left field in the first inning. The Bulldogs responded almost immediately with an RBI single in the bottom half of the frame and then things fell quiet until the fourth. MSU took a one-run lead in the fourth but lost it in the top of the fifth to a [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] double that split the gap in left-center. [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] and Wyatt Langford came around giving the Gators a 3-2 lead.

On the mound, each club had decent nights from their starter that ended earlier than they would have liked. [autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] lasted just four innings for Florida after working his pitch count into the upper-80s with seven strikeouts and four walks. Preston Johnson went five innings for Miss. State and also struck out seven while walking five. Florida struggled to get the Bulldogs’ bullpen until the ninth inning.

KC Hunt came in for his second inning of work and ran into trouble quickly. Thompson reached on an infield single to third base to start the inning off. The umpire gifted two strike calls to Hunt and punched out [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] before Riopelle drew a walk. Caglianone doubled again to left scoring Thompson and giving the Gators the lead. The ball should’ve been playable, but the left fielder took a horrible route and broke inward on a ball that was clearly going over his head.

That’s when the floodgates opened up.

[autotag]Kendrick Calilao[/autotag] somehow kept a double down the right-field line fair and drove in two more. 6-3, Gators. The Bulldogs got finally got the first out of the inning at home plate on a fielder’s choice from [autotag]Colby Halte[/autotag]r. It didn’t matter much, though, as right fielder Ty Evans homered and made it 9-3.

The bottom half of the frame was a formality for [autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag] who entered as the third UF reliever of the game in the seventh and closed it out. [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] was the first pitcher out of the bullpen for [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] and [autotag]Fisher Jameson[/autotag] followed in his third appearance of the year.

Sully opted to give Evans a rare start in this one. Thompson moved into the infield at second base shifting Halter over to third and pushing [autotag]Deric Fabian[/autotag] out of the lineup. We suggested in a midseason review of the team that removing him temporarily could be a way to shake up the lineup, but it seems this is only a night off for the younger Fabian, according to On3’s Nick de la Torre.

The Gators will go for the sweep on Sunday against projected starter Cade Smith. After a solid freshman year out of the bullpen, Smith has stepped into a starting role and served as the third-man nicely. Florida’s starter is unknown at this point. First pitch is at 2 p.m. EDT.

[mm-video type=video id=01g1gqdecftzmqk82b42 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g1gqdecftzmqk82b42/01g1gqdecftzmqk82b42-a08b663706c51a760c462832c7e3b72c.jpg]

[listicle id=83466]

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

Let us know your thoughts and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today!

BT Riopelle carries Florida to victory over Mississippi State

Florida baseball catcher BT Riopelle had a perfect night at the dish, carrying the Gators to victory over Mississippi State on Friday.

Florida baseball catcher [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] recognized every pitch the Mississippi State Bulldogs threw at him Friday night. He finished four for four with a double and a home run to go with six RBIs. Riopelle lifted the Gators to an 8-6 victory over Mississippi State in the opening game of their weekend series in Starkville, Mississippi.

Florida quickly spotted starter [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] two runs before he even took the rubber. The Gators loaded the bases, and Riopelle drove in left fielder [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] and right fielder [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag].

The Gators picked up where they left off versus the Bulldogs’ starter Brandon Smith. They tacked on four more runs when Langford blasted a solo shot and Riopelle rocketed a three-run homer two batters later.

Florida scored one more run in the fifth when first baseman [autotag]Kendrick Calilao[/autotag] singled to bring home Riopelle in the fifth giving it a commanding 7-0 lead.

Mississippi State broke through for two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Sproat surrendered back-to-back singles to open the inning. After a strikeout, shortstop Lane Forsythe singled in a run and then second baseman RJ Yeager used a sac fly to drive home another to bring the score to 7-2.

The Gators answered in the next half-inning. Riopelle doubled to drive in Langford.

Head coach [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] called in reliever [autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] to enter for Sproat to start the seventh inning. He finished his evening, going six innings and allowing six hits, one walk and two earned runs along with five strikeouts.

Purnell and the Florida defense struggled in the seventh, however. He surrendered two singles to lead off the inning. Then third baseman [autotag]Deric Fabian[/autotag] committed a throwing error, loading the bases. Purnell recorded two outs via a fielder’s choice and a groundout but then gave up another single before O’Sullivan pulled him for [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag], who struck out designated hitter Hunter Hines to retire the side.

Purnell only lasted 2/3 of an inning allowing three hits and three runs but only one of them was earned due to the Fabian error and allowed Mississippi State to get back within striking distance at 8-5.

Pitcher [autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] replaced Abner in the eighth. He gave up a lead-off single then O’Sullivan signaled for [autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag]. He walked back-to-back Bulldogs to load the bases but escaped the inning only allowing a run.

O’Sullivan returned to Slater in the ninth. He recorded two quick outs but gave up a single to bring the tying run to the dish. Slater got the next batter to ground out to first to secure the 8-6 win.

Florida and the Bulldogs return to Dudy Noble Field for game two of the series Saturday at 7:30 p.m. EDT and can be seen on ESPNU.

[mm-video type=video id=01g2dx9wd96avactdfad playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g2dx9wd96avactdfad/01g2dx9wd96avactdfad-8c08ea33b7bda5675ed7817b1af25fcc.jpg]

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

Let us know your thoughts and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today!

Gators drop series opener to Vanderbilt in walk-off fashion

Florida’s pitching woes continue in a heartbreaking walk-off loss to Vanderbilt on Friday.

Florida baseball kicked off the Passover-Easter weekend series against the Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville on Friday night with a heartbreaking 5-4 walk-off loss. The Gators held an early advantage but simply could not hold on for a full nine innings.

[autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] got things started early with a two-run homer following a lead-off full-count walk drawn by [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] to open the game. The round-tripper was the center fielder’s 14th of the season and fifth in SEC play, giving the Gators an early lead.

[autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag] took the rubber for Florida and could not keep the ‘Dores off the board in the bottom of the first frame, allowing three straight singles that plated a run after striking out the first two batters he faced. He escaped further damage by sending down the sixth batter he saw swinging.

The second inning went quietly for the Gators, as [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] drew a walk after a leadoff lineout by [autotag]Kendrick Calilao[/autotag] that was erased by a double play grounded into by [autotag]Mac Guscette[/autotag]. Vandy, however, tied things up in a 1-0 count with a deep drive to left by Calvin Hewett. Barco buckled down afterward to get the next two outs before a walk and an error on a pickoff attempt put the pitcher in peril but he escaped the jam with a groundout.

[autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] said that Barco was coming off being sick and looked “a little run down” early, so he put [autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] in to start the third. A harmless single was all the Commodores could muster, and Florida reclaimed the lead in the top of the fourth. Calilao drove in [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], who opened the inning up with a double and moved over to third on a [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] fly ball to right.

Vanderbilt’s starter, Chris McElvain, was pulled after a [autotag]Deric Fabian[/autotag] single in the top of the fifth for sophomore right-hander Patrick Reilly. Langford eventually brought Fabian home on a single, but Reilly kept Florida quiet through the remainder of the frame.

Ficarrotta came back out for the sixth but four innings of relief was too much to ask for. A four-pitch walk was followed by a single and a sacrifice bunt, and then O’Sullivan brought in [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] to face a single batter. A sac fly to center brought the score to 4-3, and in came [autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag] to close things out with a strikeout. Unfortunately, Riopelle let a ball go under his legs and to the backstop allowing the tying run to come in without a base hit.

Each team left two runners on base in the seventh, and Florida made yet another pitching change. This time it was the Gators’ ace-in-the-hole [autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] for his 20th appearance of the season. The Commodores brought in junior Thomas Schultz in the eighth to counter.

The game threatened to go into extras, but Sully once again leaned too hard on one of his best relievers. Purnell didn’t get single out in the bottom of the ninth thanks to a throwing error by Rivera. An intentional walk loaded the bases, and Jack Bulger sent the fans home happy with a game-winning single into right-center.

The loss isn’t Purnell’s fault and it’s not the first time he’s been left stranded on the mound with no options to bail him out. Pitching depth continues to be a huge problem for this club and Sully continues to misjudge the stamina of his top bullpen arms.

[mm-video type=video id=01g02xe7d4ar3cnmy566 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g02xe7d4ar3cnmy566/01g02xe7d4ar3cnmy566-57765b613241d8f07a02bf5a8e1c688b.jpg]

[listicle id=81128]

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

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Florida baseball: Pogue’s shaky start dooms Gators against FSU

One step forward, two steps back. The Gators lose an ugly one to FSU after taking two of three from Arkansas.

Florida had a shot to take the season series from Florida State on Tuesday night, but the Seminoles rode a five-run first inning to a 5-0 victory in Tallahassee.

[autotag]Nick Pogue[/autotag] got the start for Florida but struggled to get just one out. After giving up back-to-back homers and allowing another man to hit safely, Pogue’s night was over after just 23 pitches. [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] brought in [autotag]Tyler Nesbitt[/autotag] as a long reliever, but it took a while for him to settle in. Two more singles brought in another run to make it 4-0 and the final one came in as catcher [autotag]Mac Guscette[/autotag] threw out a runner attempting to steal second. At that point, trading outs for runs seemed necessary.

Normally, a five-run first means a high-scoring affair, but both clubs stayed quiet for the rest of the night. That’s good news for the Gators’ struggling bullpen and bad news for a veteran offense that should’ve been able to fight back. Instead, Florida managed just two hits all night and struck out 14 times.

Nesbitt worked through the third and then let [autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] come in to eat 2 2/3 innings. [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] pitched through the seventh, and [autotag]Karl Hartman[/autotag] impressed with a two-strikeout eighth. Ficarotta has been solid all year for the Gators, but Abner and Hartman could stand to become a bit more consistent. An outing like this against a club like FSU should earn them some favor in Sully’s book.

Vanderbilt is up next over the weekend as Florida returns to a more typical Friday-Saturday-Sunday schedule over the next few weeks. The Commodores are no joke but have a similar record to Florida and recently dropped out of the top 25. It’ll be a test run of sorts for the squad before hosting Tennessee the following week.

[mm-video type=video id=01g0f0rxsktz47exw68g playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g0f0rxsktz47exw68g/01g0f0rxsktz47exw68g-21a81c48cb240f6ee3f6a40dfa2487d5.jpg]

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

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Florida baseball completes season sweep over FAMU with blowout win

That’s twice this season that Florida has put a beating on FAMU. Now let’s see it translate into conference play this weekend.

It wasn’t the 17-0 shutout Florida managed against Florida A&M earlier in the season, but the Gators took care of the Rattlers easily on Tuesday, 13-3.

The bulk of the damage came in the third and fourth frames as the Gators plated 10 runs in those two innings alone. Both Fabian brothers went deep in the bottom of the fourth marking the first occurrence of the brothers going yard in the same inning, and Derek finished the night with a team-high three RBIs while going 2-for-3 at the plate. Jud, [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] and [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] all finished with three hits against FAMU.

On the mound, [autotag]Nick Pogue[/autotag] got the start and lasted three innings. It hasn’t been the easiest return from Tommy John for him, but holding the Rattlers hitless and scoreless should earn him some more playing time. [autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] pitched two innings of one-hit ball as the first man out of the pen for UF.

[autotag]Tyler Nesbitt[/autotag] and [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] worked the sixth and seventh innings, respectively. FAMU finally broke through in the eighth with [autotag]Timmy Manning[/autotag] on the bump. Three runs crossed but only one was earned. [autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] was the last pitcher out for the Gators and needed just 13 pitches to get through the ninth.

Winning this game isn’t going to do a ton for Florida’s confidence offensively but the pitching staff needed a relatively quiet night after the LSU and Georgia series. Up next is No. 2 Arkansas in Gainesville for an important Thursday-Friday-Saturday series and then the Gators hit the road to face Florida State and Vanderbilt the following week.

[mm-video type=video id=01fzxvey69v0kkv5sy74 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fzxvey69v0kkv5sy74/01fzxvey69v0kkv5sy74-8371b93d98d976c05215867d90cdb544.jpg]

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

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Gators can’t prevent Georgia from sweeping weekend series

That’s five Ls in a row to conference foes for the Gators. Something needs to change.

The Florida Gators looked like they were going to leave Athens with at least one win, but terrible pitching late in the game Saturday cost UF the game and gave Georgia the series sweep with a 14-8 victory.

The game figured to be a high-scoring affair with [autotag]Garret Milchin[/autotag] on the mound for Florida and Nolan Crisp getting his first for the Dawgs. Crisp won the battle lasting 4 1/3 innings and giving up three runs. Milchin was pulled before he could record an out in the first inning.

Brandon Neely came in relief of Milchin and worked a solid five innings. He was in line for the win after Florida took advantage of a Georgia error in the fifth and jumped out to a 6-2 lead on a [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] home run. Neely gave up one more run in the fifth before turning the ball over to [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag]. He pitched a clean sixth but was pulled quickly after walking the first two batters in the seventh.

[autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] came to regret that decision as [autotag]Tyler Nesbitt[/autotag] gave up eight runs in the inning (two of them were charged to Abner). The Bulldogs hit back-to-back homers and took a five-run lead that Florida couldn’t cut into with just two innings left to play. [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] tried his best with a two-run dinger of his own in the eighth, but Georgia responded with another three runs in the bottom of the inning.

Jud Fabian could only watch the final strike of the ballgame go by him as Florida dropped its fifth-straight conference game.

The sweep will knock Florida out of the top 15 in next week’s update and it’s time to start asking how long this team will be ranked if it keeps giving away wins like this.

[mm-video type=video id=01fznscq3kp685bmmk8j playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fznscq3kp685bmmk8j/01fznscq3kp685bmmk8j-bb93b2e420f3b295296bfc3a6b92ab78.jpg]

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

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Florida baseball can’t capitalize on Sproat’s strong outing against Georgia

The Gators are now 1-5 in their last six games against SEC opponents ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Florida will look to prevent the sweep on Sunday after dropping Game 2 of the weekend series against the Georgia Bulldogs on Friday night, 6-1.

Brandon Sproat matched Georgia’s ace Jonathan Cannon for most of the night, but the Bulldogs finally got to him in the sixth for three runs. He finished the night with eight strikeouts. [autotag]Phillip Abner[/autotag] came in to pitch a clean seventh, and [autotag]Nick Ficcarrotta[/autotag] followed him in the eighth. Fic gave up another three runs and put the game out of reach for the Gators with little time to rally.

The final score might have been worse if a bizarre play in the second involving the umpire being hit by a ball that was clearly an RBI base-hit hadn’t resulted in a runner being sent back to third.

The rule states that once the ball hits the umpire, the ball is ruled dead, the batter is given a hit and runners are sent back to their bases unless forced to move up. Since the play had men and first and third, Georgia was robbed of what obviously would have been a run had it not struck the umpire’s foot.

Bulldogs manager Scott Strickland (no, not Scott Stricklin) wasn’t a huge fan of the call and let the umpires hear it in between innings. Eventually, Strickland was tossed which led to an old-fashioned meltdown on the field. It’s hard to see what happened and not side with Strickland on this one, even if you’re a Gators fan. At least he got his money’s worth after being tossed.

[autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] broke up the shutout with a solo home run in the eighth, but the Gators couldn’t muster up much else against Jack Gowen, who pitched three innings in relief for UGA. Florida had several opportunities on the night to score.

Just before Georgia took the lead in the bottom of the sixth, the Gators threatened to score with the bases loaded and no outs. [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] was thrown out at home and the next two batters gave the Bulldogs an easy out with two flyouts.

UF finished the night with eight hits, but none of them came when the team needed them the most. That seems to be the story in conference play so far with these Gators despite the obvious talent scattered around the team.

[autotag]Garrett Milchin[/autotag] gets the start for Florida on Saturday. The Gators are 1-5 in their last six SEC games, so this is a must-win. One run in the eighth inning isn’t going to cut it on any night, and they need to get back to hitting the ball consistently with runners in scoring position.

[mm-video type=video id=01fzkje6w12vj7a1aqrq playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fzkje6w12vj7a1aqrq/01fzkje6w12vj7a1aqrq-d37db3673dc80a8c72e6b2af65aa3ec0.jpg]

[listicle id=80882]

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

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.