Florida continued its conference dominance this weekend.
For the third time this month, the No. 2 Gators (30-1, 7-0 Southeastern Conference) swept an SEC opponent, and for the fifth consecutive game, freshman Hannah Rogers started and shut down a team from Mississippi.
After earning two wins against Mississippi State on Wednesday and two more against Ole Miss Friday and Saturday, the young righty picked up her 16th victory as the Gators took advantage of the Rebels’ severe control issues to win 11-3.
Rogers allowed three unearned runs on two hits in five innings, struck out four batters and lowered her ERA to a team-leading 0.43.
Rogers has had to shoulder the load recently with Stephanie Brombacher sidelined with arm pain.
Although there is no timetable for Brombacher’s return, Rogers has proven more than capable of being the team’s top pitcher.
“We haven’t had just one kid get the ball in five straight games in a long time,” UF coach Tim Walton said. “Her strength and dependability warranted her going out there.”
While some would think the high number of starts could result in fatigue, the actual workload was manageable.
Over the past five days, Rogers threw 220 pitches over 23 innings. By comparison, three Rebels pitchers combined for 177 pitches Sunday.
Although the Gators didn’t put Sunday’s game out of reach until the final inning, they drew 15 walks, had 10 hits and outscored the Rebels 37-6 this weekend.
Down 3-2 after four innings, UF scored nine runs during the final three to seal the victory.
“A lot of times people think drawing a lot of walks makes it easier to hit,” Walton said. “But sometimes it’s the opposite. We struggled the first three innings, but then we got some big hits in key situations.”
The Gators’ patience resulted in two bases-loaded walks in the fifth to give them the lead.
Right fielder Kelsey Horton, who had three RBIs, added another run with her sixth-inning single before UF exploded for six more in the final frame.
The scoring was led by two of the Gators’ most consistent hitters, seniors Kelsey Bruder and Megan Bush, who each drove in two runs on the day.
