Tell me if you’ve heard this one before:
An opposing team takes the early lead on No. 1 Florida at McKethan Stadium only to hand it back in the middle innings and suffocate under the pressure of what might be the best bullpen in college baseball and an overwhelming offensive outbreak.
Well, it happened again. The only difference is this time it happened in a Southeastern Conference opener and it set the school record for consecutive wins with 15.
“Fortunately for us we’ve got so much power in our offense and such a good bullpen that we can always score runs like we did,” senior right fielder Preston Tucker said.
For the 10th time this season, the Gators (17-1, 1-0 SEC) won a game after their opponent scored first. This time the foe was Vanderbilt (7-11, 0-1 SEC) and the final score was 10-2.
The Commodores came in with some fire after losing to the Gators in five of the two teams’ six meetings last year, including the finals of the SEC Tournament and later at the College World Series.
Vandy came out swinging on UF starter Hudson Randall, reeling off back-to-back hits in the first that included a Conrad Gregor RBI triple to right to open up a 1-0 lead. The Commodores tagged on another run in the fifth inning after an Anthony Gomez single scored Tony Kemp, who had advanced into scoring position on the 11th stolen base Florida has allowed this season.
For four innings, Vanderbilt left-handed starter Kevin Ziomek had kept the Gators in check, but in the span of 10 batters it was over.
“You’ve got to stay in your game and not let the other team get to you too much,” Randall said. “I knew the bats were coming along. I just had to stay in my game.”
Austin Maddox led off the fifth with a single and by the time the third out was recorded, the Gators had pushed across five runs on RBI hits by Tyler Thompson, Nolan Fontana and Tucker, along with two more runs on a sac fly by Mike Zunino and a Ziomek balk.
Two innings later the Gators pegged on a four-inning frame, two of those runs courtesy of a two-run triple by Tucker, his second triple in two games.
“Two hits is good for a Friday night, so I’ll sit on that,” Tucker said.
Another big lead gave UF coach Kevin O’Sullivan an opportunity to toy around with his bullpen in the late innings. In an SEC opener, freshmen Corey Stump and Justin Shafer finished out the game for Florida in scoreless fashion. It was Stump’s second appearance of the season, the first coming in a mid-week game against Florida Atlantic.
“There's a good chance [Steven Rodriguez] might have to face (Mike) Yastrzemski and Gregor some point this weekend, and I didn't want to give them a look tonight and save him,” O’Sullivan said. “Great chance to get Stump in there and a great opportunity to get Shafer in there."
Preston Tucker knocked in a game-high three runs in Florida's 10-2 win against Vanderbilt in Friday night's Southeastern Conference opener.
