Tag: Sterlin Thompson

Explosive fifth inning boosts Florida baseball past LSU in series opener

The fifth inning was a difference-maker again for the Gators.

The fifth frame has been the friendliest out of all nine for Florida baseball’s lineup this season and was so again on Friday night versus LSU. The Gators used the four runs they scored in the inning to knock off the Tigers at Florida Ballpark, 7-2.

Florida second baseman [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] and catcher [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] smacked two solo shots in the first and fourth innings, respectively, to give their team the early lead.

Then came the fifth inning when Florida’s bats caught fire once again as it has done throughout most of the season. Center fielder [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] grounded out to shortstop to score designated hitter [autotag]Khris Armstrong[/autotag]. Right fielder [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] then singled to send third baseman [autotag]Deric Fabian[/autotag] home. Left fielder [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] followed, blasting a two-run shot to left field to give the Gators a 6-0 advantage.

Their large outburst increased their season total to 32 in the middle inning. The team as a whole has recorded 164 runs, so 20% of their production has come in that fifth frame.

Coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s team piled on one more run in the sixth, and LSU posted two late runs in the eighth and ninth innings to get to the final score of 7-2.

The Gators’ ace [autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag] excelled as per usual. He went seven innings, only allowing two hits and zero runs while walking three and hitting two Tigers and striking out eight. The only inning that Barco had trouble was when he walked back-to-back hitters in the fourth, but he escaped a batter later when LSU hit into an inning-ending double play.

Florida’s hitters tallied an efficient seven runs on seven hits and only left six runners on base, while also demonstrating patience in the batter’s box by drawing seven walks. Langford led the way individually, going 1-for-3 with two RBIs.

Florida will try to take the series versus LSU Saturday at 6:30 p.m. EDT and can be seen on SEC Network+.

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Here is Florida baseball’s complete 2021 summer league roundup

Here’s how all nine Florida baseball players participating in the college summer leagues fared in wooden bat competition.

As August quickly consumes the calendar, the collegiate baseball summer leagues are winding down leaving a short season’s worth of stats to pore over for baseball enthusiasts. For fans of the Florida Gators, there were nine current members of the Orange and Blue in action over the past few months, including a pair of pitchers representing the Gator Nation with the USA Collegiate National Team.

UF players also saw action in the various leagues across the country, namely, the prestigious Cape Cod League, Valley League, Coastal Plains League, and close to home in the Florida Collegiate Summer League. Among them, three Gators earned all-league or all-star honors as a result of their standout performances. Here is a look at how all nine Gators fared this summer in wooden bat competition.

This trio of Gators earned SEC All-Tournament honors

Jacob Young, Nate Hickey and Sterlin Thompson all earned All-Tournament Team honors for their performances in Hoover this week.

Though the Gators didn’t come out on top this weekend in Hoover at the SEC Tournament, their performance certainly drew some attention. Florida went 3-1 en route to the semifinals, and that included a 13-1 run-rule victory over the No. 8 team in the country in Mississippi State.

It shouldn’t be surprising that, aside from tournament champion Arkansas and runner-up Tennessee, UF has the most players on the All-Tournament Team with three.

When talking about Florida’s play this week, the first player that comes to mind is Jacob Young, who had perhaps the hottest bat in Hoover. Among players with five or more at-bats, Young finished with the highest batting average at .471 (8-for-17). He also had two home runs, a double and five RBI.

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As the leadoff hitter, the Gators will need Young to stay hot heading into regional play next weekend. But luckily, the two-hole hitter isn’t a bad option, either. Nate Hickey made the switch this week from catcher to third base, a move coach Kevin O’Sullivan said would’ve been made earlier in the season had Mac Guscette not suffered an injury. Hickey shined at third defensively, and he hit a homer on a 6-of-14 week at the plate. He was rightly given a spot on the All-Tournament Team alongside Young for his efforts.

Last (but certainly not least) true freshman Sterlin Thompson continues to impress down the home stretch of the season. He’s been one of Florida’s most consistent batters this season, and he hit a homer to go with two doubles and five RBI in Hoover. In the win over MSU, he hit two extra-base hits, and in the victory against Alabama he went 3-for-4 at the plate.

Though UF’s run only resulted in the No. 15 overall national seed, its performance should be a confidence-building one heading into NCAA regionals.

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