It took until the eighth inning, but Florida finally pulled away from a pesky FAU team.
With the score tied at seven, Buddy Reed waltzed down the third base line to score after a FAU throwing error.
Next, Richie Martin scored on an A.J. Puk RBI fielder’s choice, and Jason Lombardozzi reached home after Josh Tobias got his first hit of the night.
Behind 13 hits, No. 6 Florida (7-1) defeated FAU 10-8 on Tuesday night.
Despite the win, it was a rough game for Florida’s pitchers, who allowed 10 hits while recording just five strikeouts. Coach Kevin O’Sullivan was forced to play six different pitchers to close out the Owls.
"We had some pitchers go to the mound tonight that were a little inconsistent," O’Sullivan said. "We’ve got to find some consistency on the mound. We’ve got to jump ahead of the count. We’ve got to throw and pitch like we’re capable."
FAU challenged UF’s defense for most of the night, but the Gators saw strong play from Harrison Bader, who made two diving catches in center field to save two potential runs.
But for the second time this season, the junior was quiet on the offensive end, going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
The game was scoreless until the second inning, when FAU’s Christian Dicks doubled to left field, scoring runners at second and third base.
The Owls increased the lead to three after a Brett Morales wild pitch.
Morales, who was pulled in the third inning for right-hander Shaun Anderson, allowed four hits and three runs in 2.2 innings.
Florida got on the board in the top of the third after a RBI single from freshman J.J. Schwarz.
In the fourth, Ryan Larson scored off a line-drive single from freshman Dalton Guthrie. Florida’s next two batters — Buddy Reed and Richie Martin — batted in one run apiece to tie the game at three.
A total of seven runs were scored in the sixth inning, beginning with two hits from Martin and Schwarz, who combined for five RBIs and five hits against FAU.
Danny Young took the mound for Florida, but was soon pulled for Aaron Rhodes after giving up one run and loading the bases.
After Florida broke the tie in the eighth inning, it held on to the lead to earn its second straight victory.
"There were some positives," O’Sullivan said. "We just gotta play better defense and we gotta make some better pitches and get ahead of the count. I’m sure that they’re going to learn from tonight and be better because of it."
Florida will next host Stony Brook in a three-game series beginning on Friday at 7 p.m..
"You know, theres a lot of guys contributing, and we’ve played a lot of different guys early in the year," O’Sullivan said. "It’s very early and we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us."
A radio broadcast contributed to this report.
Follow Ian Cohen on Twitter @icohenb
Freshman JJ Schwarz bats during Florida's 7-2 loss to Miami on Saturday at McKethan Stadium.
