After a back-and-forth first few innings, Florida found itself down by one in the bottom of the third. However, two solo shots moments later gave the Gators their first lead of the ballgame, and they didn’t look back from there.
The No. 8 Florida Gators (10-0) took down the in-state rival Miami Hurricanes (8-2) at Condron Ballpark on Friday night 6-2 to clinch the series opener.
Senior third baseman Bobby Boser led off the third with a bang. He hit a no-doubt homer into the left-field bullpen that tied the game at two. It was his fourth long ball of the year. Three batters later, freshman first baseman Brendan Lawson continued his hot stretch as he blasted a 415-foot bomb to straightaway center field to give Florida a one-run advantage.
The pair had phenomenal nights at the plate, beyond just their home runs. Boser went 3-for-4 with a walk, two RBIs and two runs scored while Lawson had two hits, drove in a pair of runs and scored three times.
“I’m just trying to do my job up at the plate,” Boser said. “Get the guys going, stack up at-bats behind me, in front of me. Whatever the game asks of us. I think we’ve done a pretty good job, and I’m glad to be in the middle of it.”
The Gators added one in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to put the game out of reach.
Sophomore right-hander Liam Peterson made his third start of the year and earned the win despite not being as sharp as his first two outings. He still had his swing-and-miss stuff on display, as he struck out seven in six innings of work, allowing two runs on four hits with just one walk.
The first run he gave up came on an RBI single from Miami junior shortstop Jake Ogden in the first inning and the second was a wild pitch that allowed freshman center fielder Michael Torres to score two innings later. Other than that, Peterson was on point, as he held a Miami offense that had scored at least 10 in three straight games in check.
“He did a heck of a job,” Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “Even after the first inning, when they scored, he kind of kept it together. He was outstanding. He set the tone for the weekend.”
O’Sullivan turned to sophomore lefty Frank Menendez to replace Peterson in the seventh. After allowing a leadoff single, Menendez struck out three straight to end the scoreless frame in his one inning of work.
Sophomore right-handers Luke McNeillie and Alex Philpott finished the final two innings in UF’s win. McNeillie tossed a one-two-three eighth inning with one strikeout and Philpott did the same in the ninth to secure the victory.
“What can you say about our bullpen,” O’Sullivan said. “Everybody kind of came in and just did their job. It was a really well-finished game on the mound for us tonight.”
The Gators improved to 42-18 over their in-state rival since O’Sullivan took over as head coach in 2008 with the win. They are now tied in the all-time series with the Hurricanes at 135-135-1.
Florida will look to clinch its fourth straight series victory over Miami on Saturday. Redshirt junior left-hander Pierce Coppola will get the ball for Florida after a 2-0 start to his season with a 1.80 ERA through 10 innings of work. First pitch at Condron Ballpark is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. ET.
“There’s always more juice when we play those guys,” Peterson said. “We certainly don’t like them. They don’t like us.”
Contact Hugh Green at hgreen@alligator.org. Follow him on X @HGreen_15.
Hugh is the Spring 2025 baseball beat reporter for The Alligator. He is a fourth-year journalism sports and media major. In his free time, Hugh enjoys watching all kinds of sports with his friends.
