It has been a long time since Florida Gators baseball lost four-consecutive games.
The Mississippi State Bulldogs baseball team came into this weekend ready to play, as evidenced by its most recent drubbing of the Florida Gators.
Entering Friday night’s showdown in Starkville, Mississippi, the No. 1 Florida Gators had already clinched a share of the SEC title, and they were able to use this weekend’s series as a test for their pitchers before the postseason.
A baseball cruised through the air and fell down just inside the right-field line as a stampede of Mississippi State Bulldog baseball players circled the bases, finally coming to rest after plating two runs.
Camaraderie. Togetherness. Team.
No tears dropped, but a soft, bittersweet smile found its way onto senior JJ Schwarz’s face. Giving a small wave, it finally hit him that his last season in a Florida baseball jersey would soon come to an end.
All Jack Leftwich could do was watch as Georgia left fielder Keegan McGovern’s 3-run homer sailed over the scoreboard in right field.
As the ball left Blake Reese’s bat in the bottom of the sixth inning, there were only two people moving on the play.
Wil Dalton knew the ball was deep enough to win the game as soon as it left the bat.
Down 8-4 in the bottom of the sixth inning Tuesday night, the Gators needed a jolt of energy.
The Gators tied the game at three apiece in the top of the third inning during Sunday’s series finale against Texas A&M. Florida recorded a run in much the same way it had scored many of its previous 17 runs against the Aggies: manufacturing chances off of smart base running and timely hitting.
After a leadoff walk to third baseman Jonathan India started the sixth inning in College Station, Texas, UF right fielder Wil Dalton stepped into the batter’s box.
If Thursday night’s game between the Auburn and Florida baseball teams was a carefully choreographed ballet, Friday night’s matchup was a chaotic mosh pit.
Gators third baseman Jonathan India hadn’t been himself recently.Well, relatively speaking. Since having his 24-game hitting streak interrupted in UF’s series against Kentucky, he’d gone 3-of-11 from the plate with a pair of RBIs and one home run.
At least a few of the 3,133 Gators fans at McKethan Stadium Tuesday night probably didn’t see it coming. After Florida (34-9, 14-4 SEC) won its series against No. 14 Kentucky with relative ease over the weekend, they probably believed the Gators were due for a nice, easy midweek win against Mercer.
Strip away the names. Take out the conferences. Now make a snap judgement. Which of these two teams would have a better shot at beating No. 1-ranked Florida (34-8, 14-4 SEC)?
McKethan Stadium is quiet now.
Wil Dalton tapped his right cleat with the barrel of his bat after watching strike three blow past him.
Wil Dalton busted the game open in the third inning. His three-run homer gave the No. 1 Gators an insurmountable six-run lead the No. 6 Kentucky Wildcats couldn’t touch. But his at-bat wasn’t the night’s most memorable.
The No. 1 Gators (32-7, 12-3 SEC) dropped a midweek matchup to Jacksonville on Tuesday to snap a nine-game home winning streak. With Florida’s next series starting tonight against Kentucky rather than the normal Friday start due to television scheduling, coach Kevin O’Sullivan had to work around using certain bullpen players, including closer Michael Byrne and freshmen Tommy Mace and Jordan Butler.
Solutions by The State News
