Gator Softball Plays Razorbacks in regular season series finale

The No. 5/7 Florida Gator softball team will look to rebound from their series loss to Missouri this weekend as they face-off against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the regular season series finale.

The Gators are coming into this game 42-10 overall, sitting 12-9 in the SEC which places them tied for fifth with the Georgia Bulldogs.  However, UF could end up tied for second in the league if things break right.

Welcoming the Gators this weekend will be the Hogs and despite boasting a 5-16 record in conference play, they will be looking to carry their own momentum into the tournament. This will be the first meeting between the teams this year and despite their below.500 record, Gator coach Tim Walton says they are a very strong team.

“Their offensive numbers are very good. They have a lot of walks, some home runs and on a positive note their offense is pretty solid.”

The Razorbacks have eight players batting over .300 on the year and the team is being led by junior Devon Wallace who is batting .338 with 12 homers and 36 runs batted in. In the circle the Gators will have to look out for freshman Grace Moll who holds a 10-5 record for the Razorbacks this season and leads the team with 27 appearances and 17 starts.

The Gators will be looking to bounce back from their first series loss since late March and senior pitcher Hannah Rogers should have a big impact on that success. After taking both losses last weekend to the Tigers, Rogers will look to improve her performance as the post-season approaches. Rogers currently leads the team with a record of 21-8 on the year with 32 appearances and 27 starts. The Gator lineup has been the least of Walton’s worries with the team batting an average over .300 totaling 68 home runs and 333 runs batted in throughout the season.

The Gators currently hold a record of 9-4 on the road this season and Walton says the team is only getting better.

“When Hannah, Lauren and Delanie are pitching well, our offense only feeds off that and that’s what I’m looking forward too is us making those strides. I think we’ve got the tools and I think we can beat anyone.”

The Gators will be looking to make one more statement as the regular season comes to a close and that begins in Fayetteville.

The three game set between the Gators and Razorbacks will begin on Friday with game one, first pitch is set for 7pm.

For pre-game audio from Tim Walton click on the links below:

Tim Walton talks about the Razorbacks

Tim Walton talks about the Gators progress on the season

Tim Walton talks about his team’s resiliency