The top of the Gators’ lineup flexed its muscles Friday night.
Florida took apart South Carolina in the first matchup of a three-game weekend series. The bulk of the power in the Gators’ 9-1 victory over the Gamecocks came from the No. 1 through No. 4 spots in the batting order.
Freshman Lauren Haeger, hitting in the cleanup spot, hurt South Carolina (19-10, 2-4 Southeastern Conference) the most. She knocked in a game-high three runs, improving her RBI total to 26, which ranks second for Florida (24-2, 5-1 SEC). Only junior Kelsey Horton has more with 29.
Freshman Sami Fagan, sophomore Kasey Fagan and senior Michelle Moultire chipped in one RBI each for a combined six from the top four spots in the order.
Freshman Bailey Castro picked up the slack in the bottom half of the batting order. She knocked in three runs, tying Haeger’s number and doubling her season total to six.
Castro’s biggest hit came during the bottom of the second in just her 10th at bat of the year. Facing a 3-2 count with two runners on base, Castro turned on a pitch and sent it over the left-field wall for a three-run shot.
It was the first home run of Castro’s collegiate career and just her second overall hit. Castro recently came off a leg injury that reduced her playing time significantly in the beginning of the season.
In the circle, sophomore Hannah Rogers threw five innings of four-hit ball. Rogers’ only blemish was giving up an RBI double in the fourth. Although the Gators were already up by six at that point, they promptly pushed two more across the plate in the fifth to run-rule the Gamecocks.
The eight-run margin of victory was the largest so far against an SEC opponent this season.
Florida will take on South Carolina in the second game of the series on Saturday at 1 p.m.
