UCF’s Darnell Sweeney hurt the Gators in more ways than one Tuesday night.
In the seventh inning of the Knights’ 4-3 victory, Sweeney, the eventual hero with his go-ahead two-run double in the ninth, hit a fly ball into shallow left field. Florida shortstop Nolan Fontana back-pedaled from his position, chasing the seeing-eye single into a crowd of Gators outfielders.
After the ball dropped, Fontana’s body drilled the ground, and his head hit the grass. The Gators’ leadoff hitter rolled in pain for several minutes while receiving medical treatment.
Fontana was able to walk off without assistance, and coach Kevin O’Sullivan said Fontana was fine leaving the field.
But when asked about his condition, O’Sullivan said, “I haven’t even talked to [team trainer John Barrett] yet.”
O’Sullivan also said he didn’t see the play, but he “thought” Fontana’s head hit the ground.
The shortstop, who was 0 for 4 before incurring the injury, was removed from the game. Sophomore Cody Dent was inserted into the lineup, grounding out in his only plate appearance.
“He’s a competitor, and no one wants to see him off the field,” junior Jeff Moyer said. “It’s tough when your big shortstop goes down like that.”
Fontana, a sophomore and freshman All-American a year ago, has led off every game this season. He is tied for first on the team with 23 RBIs and leads UF in on-base percentage, triples and walks.
No timetable was given for his possible return, and the Gators have limited options if their shortstop should miss any significant time.
Old Woes continue: After busting out of their hitting slump during last weekend’s sweep of Tennessee, the Gators reverted back to their former struggles Tuesday night.
Florida’s issues of stranding runners struck again, as its Nos. 1 through 3 hitters went a combined 1 for 13, including an 0-for-5 night from Daniel Pigott (.357).
“We left 10 guys stranded again,” O’Sullivan said. “It’s a frustrating loss.”
UF’s coach said it’s tough to have big innings with the new bats, which makes it essential to execute fundamentals.
“Those are the things that are kind of hurting us right now,” he said.
Etc: Austin Maddox continued his recent surge with two more RBIs Tuesday night. In the past four games, the sophomore has knocked in six runs on six hits after going 11 games without an RBI.
“I was scuffling a little bit early, but I just went to work and just tried to relax up there and have some fun,” he said. “That’s what I’ve been doing these last few games and it’s been working out.”
Tyler Thompson made several nice plays in center field, starting just his seventh game of the season. With two men on in the fifth, the junior made a running catch to end the threat. With the game tied in the eighth, he robbed UCF’s Chris Taladay of extra bases with a jumping grab at the wall. … Moyer’s single in the eighth was his fifth pinch hit this season.
