With an 0-2 count, freshman Katie Chronister adjusted into her windup.
Just a few batters earlier, Chronister allowed a run off of two wild pitches. And now, the bases were loaded.
With two outs in the top of the fifth, she threw the pitch.
Strike three.
It was one of the 17 strikeouts thrown between sophomore Kelly Barnhill and Chronister in Florida’s first game of the day in the Aquafina Invitational.
The Gators displayed a sense of dominance in their first game (against FAMU), ending with 13 hits and eight stolen bases in addition to the encouraging performance on the mound.
From the first inning, the hitting by the Gators was on show.
Senior Justine McLean began with a single out to left field, eventually scoring off a hit from junior Kayli Kvistad. And after three total walks in the first inning, it was senior Chelsea Herndon who stepped up to slam a single into left field to bring home the third run of the inning.
On the night, nine different players had a least one hit against the Rattlers. The thirteen total hits was a season-high for the Gators.
“We have so many opportunities with runners on base,” coach Tim Walton said. “And in a lot of cases, I think that’s going to be our key all season long, is who’s day is it today to step up because we are going to have a lot of on base kids.”
This hitting dominance was balanced with decisive running. Freshman Jordan Roberts, as well as freshman Jaimie Hoover, sophomore Brooke Clemens and DeWitt all contributed to the stolen bases.
Junior Nicole DeWitt had three of the eight total stolen bases in the game, a career high. One of those stolen bases was home plate, which she was able to steal off a wild pitch.
“You always want to come out hot,” DeWitt said. “We’ve been practicing so hard and I’ve just been getting hits and it’s just working out for me.”
On the season, DeWitt has six total stolen bases. She also recorded a triple in the fifth inning, her first of the season.
Powerful pitching was also a factor in Florida’s 8-1 win over FAMU. Of the 17 strikeouts, 11 came from Barnhill, her second highest number of strikeouts in a single game this season. For Chronister, who entered in the fifth inning, it was her first collegiate save.
This combination of dominance in hitting, pitching and stealing bases were all major factors in the first win of the day, and will be for the rest of the season.
“We kept running and finding ways to score, putting ourselves in a scoring position and I think that was the key for us,” Walton said.
Contact Cassie Amundson at camundson@alligator.org or follow her on Twitter @camundson_
Kayli Kvistad follows through on a swing during Florida's doubleheader sweep against Jacksonville on Feb. 17, 2016, at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
