Thanks to a hot start offensively, Florida has reached its second Southeastern Conference Tournament title game in as many seasons.
Freshman Taylor Schwarz knocked two of UF’s three home runs as No. 1 seed Florida held off fifth-seeded Georgia for a 9-5 victory Saturday afternoon in the SEC Tournament semifinals in Lexington, Ky.
“I don’t think early games are hard for this team,” Schwarz said. “From the start we were hyped, especially with our coaching staff and managers getting hyped with music before the game. We were ready when we stepped on that field.”
UF will face either No. 2 seed Tennessee or No. 3 seed Missouri tonight at 8 p.m. in the tournament final, which will be broadcast on ESPN.
Florida’s offense piled it on Georgia from the start. Following a single from junior Stephanie Tofft, sophomore Lauren Haeger homered to left field to drive in Tofft and give UF a 2-0 lead.
After senior Kelsey Horton was hit by Georgia pitcher Geri Ann Glasco’s first pitch at the next at-bat, Schwarz scored Horton with a homer to center field.
“I was seeing the ball really well today,” Schwarz said. “I was just getting my foot down on time and seeing the ball really well. Things happen.”
The Gators found themselves ahead 4-0 with two outs in the bottom of the first inning as UGA coach Lu Harris-Champer replaced Glasco with Morgan Montemayor.
In the second inning, Taylore Fuller reached on an error and Kirsti Merritt walked. Both moved into scoring position, and Tofft singled up the middle, bringing in both runners.
Florida continued the offensive binge in the third. Schwarz led off the frame with a solo homer, and freshman Kelsey Stewart helped the Gators to an 8-0 lead when she tripled to right-center field and scored junior Briana Little, who stood at third. Horton added to the lead in the fourth with an RBI single to left center.
“I’m happy with the way our team swung the bat today,” coach Tim Walton said. “I’ve talked about the difference of this team being a good team and a great team and it’s being able to score runs. We played great defense, pitching and throwing the ball well and now we can add the third component to it, and I think it’s huge as you start to move towards elimination-type games.”
Because Friday’s matches were canceled due to inclement weather, UF started ace Hannah Rogers for the second straight contest. The junior right-hander loaded the bases at the top of the fifth and saw her no-hitter break up when UGA second baseman Tess Sito singled to right field.
Georgia avoided getting run-ruled for the first time this season when it tagged on three runs in the fifth. The Bulldogs cut the Gators’ lead to 9-5 at the top of the seventh with one out when Paige Wilson plated a two-RBI single through the right side. But Rogers retired her final two batters to seal the victory for UF.
“We are playing well right now, and our team is going out there and hitting well and putting runs on the board early,” Rogers said. “It’s easy to go out there and pitch when they do that for you.”
Florida first baseman Taylor Schwarz (49) hits during Florida's 4-2 victory against Mississippi State on April 6 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Schwarz had one run after two attempts at bat. Schwarz homered twice in Florida's 9-5 win against Georgia in the Southeastern Conference Tournament semifinals.
