Takeaways From Gators Baseball Series Win At Miami
The Gators are finding ways to win.
After the final game of the series Sunday was canceled due to weather, Gators Baseball left Coral Gables with a two-game sweep of the then-No. 17 Miami Hurricanes (10-2).
Florida (11-1) continued its hot play and showed bright spots throughout the two games at Mark Light Field.
Peterson Picking Up
Liam Peterson is starting to show why he is the Friday starter. In the first game of the series, he pitched 5 ⅔ innings and gave up six hits and two earned runs. He also had eight strikeouts and gave up only one walk. In his last two starts, he’s allowed only two runs in 11 innings, and has struck out 20 batters and walked three.
Bullpen is Bullish
After struggling to find consistency in the bullpen to begin the season, the Gators have found something in it. The bullpen against Miami was excellent, giving up just two earned runs in 10 innings.
After Peterson exited the game Friday, reliever Jackson Barberi pitched 3 ⅓ innings and gave up only two hits and zero runs.
On Saturday, starter Aidan King left the game after 2 ⅓ inning pitched due to cramps, according to coach Kevin O’Sullivan. The bullpen gave up four hits and only one run the rest of the game. Ricky Reeth pitched four innings after King and allowed the only run of the day for the bullpen and struck out five batters.
“I think we’re about eight pitchers deep that I trust,” O’Sullivan said after the game Saturday. “Our bullpen is starting to come together for us.”
Gators Continue to Rake
The offense continued to put up runs in bunches. The team scored 15 runs across two games in the series.
Brendan Lawson continued his impressive start to the season with a three-hit game in Friday’s 7-2 win, including a no-doubt home run to left field that went 430 feet. He is now batting .474 with four home runs and 21 RBIs.
With the game tied 2-2 in the top of the 8th on Friday, designated hitter Jacob Kendall hit a go-ahead home run to right field to give the Gators a 3-2 lead, and the Gators would add four more in the inning and never looked back.
“The composure and the confidence, and the focus, and not getting caught up in an away game that was sold out for Miami, that’s probably the most proud I am of the club,” O’Sullivan said.
After giving up three runs in the first inning Saturday, the Gators responded quickly with four runs in the second, with Kyle Jones hitting a two-run double to tie the game at 3. With the Gators up 5-4 in the 9th, Ethan Surowiec hit a three-run home run to give the Gators an 8-4 lead, which became the final score. He now has four multi-RBI games this season.
Gators Outlook
The Gators have won 28 of their last 34 regular-season games dating back to 2025, and have won 26 of their last 35 against the Hurricanes. They also have their longest winning streak at 11 games since the team started 16-0 in 2020.
UF, which moved up to No. 9 in the latest D1 Baseball rankings, begins a 10-game homestand Tuesday against FAU (6-5) at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+ and 98.1-FM/850-AM WRUF at 5:55 p.m.
Category: College Baseball, Feature Sports News, Gator Sports, Gators Baseball
