In the top of the eighth inning in a contest between the No. 3/2 Florida Gators and the No. 12/13 Arkansas Razorbacks, chaos ensued as the game went into extra innings.
Arkansas junior second baseman Karlie Davison laid down a bunt and was seemingly thrown out at first base. The umpires, however, ruled the play dead beforehand, thinking the ball hit Davison. Since her knock landed in fair territory and not off Davison, she reached first base — UF head coach Tim Walton was sent into a frenzy.
He marched out of the dugout, slammed his white hat down to the ground and screamed at the umpire, leading to him being ejected from the game. In response, Walton marched to home plate and kicked the chalk outlining the batter’s box.
This fired his team up, as sophomore pitcher Ava Brown induced a flyout, a full-count strikeout and a lineout to escape a bases-loaded jam. However, this jolt of momentum was not enough for Florida. In the top of the ninth, Arkansas senior first baseman Bri Ellis hit her SEC-leading 20th home run of the campaign to right-center field, just out of the reach of the fully extended freshman right fielder Taylor Shumaker, to make it 7-6.
While Arkansas took the lead, Florida senior left fielder Korbe Otis played hero in the bottom of the ninth.The Gators loaded the bases with two outs before Otis stepped up to the plate, looking to prevent her team from dropping its second SEC series of the season. She took a one-strike pitch and lined it to right field for a walk-off grand slam. This sent her dugout and the Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium crowd into elation as UF walked off in victory.
The spark from Walton powered UF through the rest of the contest, as Florida (34-7, 7-4 SEC) defeated Arkansas (27-8, 7-7 SEC) 10-7 on Saturday in a game that lasted three hours and 34 minutes.
Florida started the scoring in this contest, unlike its previous three. Senior center fielder Kendra Falby hit a single up the middle on a full-count pitch, and freshman right fielder Taylor Shumaker walked to put two runners on. Junior catcher Jocelyn Erickson subsequently grounded into a double play to put Falby on third.
Otis then delivered on a two-strike pitch up the middle to score the opening run of the contest. Florida was not done in the frame, as senior first baseman Reagan Walsh lifted a two-strike pitch high into the clear skies. As Arkansas senior left fielder Raigan Kramer leapt to prevent the home run, the ball went in and out of her glove for a two-run shot and Walsh’s 10th blast of the campaign.
Despite taking an early lead, UF sophomore starting pitcher Keagan Rothrock struggled in her outing. She pitched four innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on seven hits. Rothrock also walked three batters and struck out four.
Her outing began to unravel in the top of the third, as she surrendered an RBI single to Ellis to put the Razorbacks on the board.
However, freshman third baseman Ella McDowell delivered the blast that stalled Florida’s momentum. She took a one-strike pitch with one out in the inning and belted a three-run blast to left-center field, just to the edge of the Florida bullpen, to give the Razorbacks their first lead of the contest.
The top of the fourth spelled more trouble for Rothrock. Sophomore catcher Kennedy Miller reached on an error by Florida senior shortstop Rylee Holtorf, and Johnson reached on an infield single to Holtorf. After a strikeout from Rothrock, Ellis delivered for the Razorbacks with a hard RBI single off the wall in left field to score Miller. Later in the frame, McDowell walked with the bases loaded as Rothrock allowed a season-high five earned runs.
Unlike previous contests where they faced deficits like this, Florida was able to respond at the plate.
After Arkansas freshman starting pitcher Payton Burnham allowed back-to-back walks to Walsh and junior third baseman Kenleigh Cahalan, her outing was done after three innings. Junior pitcher Robyn Herron (11-4), who won the previous contest, entered the game in relief.
Florida sophomore second baseman Mia Williams was the first batter she faced, and she welcomed her to the contest in a powerful way.
Williams took a full-count pitch and blasted a three-run homer that landed on the red roof of the bullpen for her 13th blast of the year, good for second on the team.
Sophomore pitcher Olivia Miller relieved Rothrock and pitched a clean fifth, but faced trouble in the sixth. She allowed the Razorbacks to load the bases in the sixth, but Brown (9-0) relieved her and induced an inning-ending flyout.
Otis’s walk-off grand slam allowed Florida to even the series, and it prevented them from dropping their second SEC series of the season.
Florida will look to take the series on Sunday, as first pitch in the finale is set for 2 p.m.
Contact Jackson Colding at jcolding@alligator.org. Follow him on X @Colding_Jackson.
Jackson Colding is a junior sports journalism major and the Spring 2025 softball reporter. He is in his second semester at the sports desk. In his free time, he likes playing hockey, soccer and going to the gym.
