After relief pitcher Tommy Toledo surrendered the go-ahead run in
the bottom of the eighth inning, things looked bleak for the No. 1
Gators.
But after clawing its way back into the contest earlier in the
game, Florida continued to fight and downed No. 5 LSU 5-4 in a
dramatic ninth inning in front of a record crowd of 10,220 at Alex
Box Stadium in Baton Rouge, La.
Two outs away from dropping its first conference game of the year,
catcher Mike Zunino smashed a homer into the left field seats,
squaring the game at 3-3.
Following an error and series of hits, UF (16-2, 1-0 Southeastern
Conference) plated two more runs off a Nolan Fontana single,
pushing its advantage to 5-3 with three outs to go.
Anthony DeSclafani, who recently developed into Florida’s stopper,
escaped a jam in the bottom of the frame, earning his third save on
the season. After the Tigers (16-2, 0-1 SEC) moved within one off
an RBI double, the right-handed closer struck out LSU’s next two
hitters, stranding the tying run at second base.
Still energized from Tuesday’s walk off win over rival Florida
State, DeSclafani pumped his fists and raced towards his teammates
to celebrate the frantic win.
Florida’s ace Brian Johnson made his first road start of the season
and tossed 5.1 innings, allowing two first-inning runs. LSU played
small ball its first at-bat, stealing three bases in the opening
frame.
But UF’s lefty settled down and retired 10 straight, keeping
Florida in the game.
The Gators chipped away at the Tigers’ early lead, scoring one run
in both the fourth and sixth innings. Zunino went 2 for 4 with two
RBIs, knocking in Florida’s first run with a single into
right.
Johnson helped himself in the sixth, tying the game with a base
hit, scoring Preston Tucker, who reached on an error.
Despite allowing the run in the eighth, Toledo (2-1) pitched well
in relief. The junior righty threw 2.2 innings with two
strikeouts.
