The Gators and the Seminoles have reversed roles.
No. 5 Florida State (16-0) defeated Florida (8-10) 4-1 Tuesday night at McKethan Stadium. The Seminoles won their first game in Gainesville since 2007. Coach Kevin O’Sullivan hadn’t lost at home to Florida State in five previous matchups.
Right-hander Luke Weaver earned the win with 6.1 innings of one-run ball. Seminoles coach Mike Martin, known for his numerous mound visits, didn’t make one until the seventh inning.
"When you look at the game, you start with pitching," Martin said. "There’s no question that was the difference in the ballgame."
Indiana left-hander Joey DeNato allowed one run in 7.1 innings against Florida on Friday. Florida Gulf Coast right-hander Ricky Knapp tossed a complete game on Feb. 22. Weaver matched their performances at the Mac. Weaver threw all three of his pitches — fastball, changeup and curveball — for strikes.
"It’s tough. You just got to try and pick one out," Justin Shafer said. "You can’t try to hit all three. We didn’t adjust well tonight."
Three relievers followed Weaver to shut out the Gators for the last three innings. Florida didn’t get a runner to second base until the fourth and went 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position.
Taylor Gushue brought in the only run for Florida on an error by Weaver, who couldn’t haul in an underhand flip while covering first base on a ground ball. With the bases loaded and two outs, Florida State right-hander Robby Coles induced a weak groundball to shortstop from Vickash Ramjit to end the eighth and Florida’s last gasp.
Florida hosts No. 10 Kentucky on Friday to open Southeastern Conference play.
"It doesn’t matter SEC or whomever we are playing on Friday," O’Sullivan said. "We got to do a better job offensively. I think we hit three balls hard all night. Let’s face it. We got some work to do offensively."
While Florida’s bats stayed quiet, Florida State did just enough. Shortstop Giovanny Alfonzo hit an 0-2 fastball from right-hander Ryan Harris in the fourth for a two-run single. Alfonzo gave Florida State a three-run lead. The Seminoles added another run in the sixth when Harris hit Josh Delph with the bases loaded. Harris started the inning by hitting John Nogowski, who eventually scored.
Florida State reached base in seven at-bats with two-strike counts. Tuesday’s loss marks the earliest Florida has reached double-digit defeats in seven seasons. The last time the Gators reached 10 losses that quickly was the 2007 campaign — the final year before O’Sullivan’s arrival at UF.
Freshman centerfielder Harrison Bader faced the media after the game in front of Florida’s dugout. The questions sounded familiar. It’s been tough for Florida. The work hasn’t translated into wins.
"We’re fighting out there," Bader said. "We’re never going to quit... As long as I’m on the field, as long as anybody is on the field we are going to put everything into it."
Gators lose pitcher:
Junior right-hander Keenan Kish will miss the season due to a hip injury. He underwent hip surgery during the summer and didn’t participate in fall practice due to hip issues as well. Kish finishes 2013 with a 3.38 ERA in three appearances. He started against UCF and North Florida. His last appearance came on Feb. 26 against the Ospreys.
Contact Adam Pincus at apincus@alligator.org.
Right-hander Luke Weaver pitches during Florida’s 4-1 loss to Florida State on Tuesday night at McKethan Stadium.
