No. 4 Florida Softball Stays Undefeated at Florida Classic
No. 4 Florida softball swamped Georgia Tech in a heated matchup to cap another undefeated weekend in the early stages of the season.
The Gators (12-0) ran away with it in the latter stages of the game Sunday to win 5-1 on the final day of the Florida Classic at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
Getting her first start in the circle was Florida freshman Leah Stevens, who struck out two and allowed the earned run before giving way to Ava Brown in the fifth inning.
“It meant a lot to me that coach (Tim) Walton trusted me to give me the start,” Stevens said. “Jocelyn [Erickson] really helped me stay settled in the first inning and then I was able to keep rolling with everyone’s encouragement.”
Brown pitched three scoreless innings to secure the Gators fifth win of the weekend and allowed one hit, along with one strikeout.
Defense was the name of the game early on, with both pitchers controlling the tempo. The Gators got going in the third inning with their first two hits and first run. Third baseman Kendall Grover singled to drive in Taylor Shumaker from second.
The Yellow Jackets (6-6) stung right back in the fourth, when Addison Leschber responded with a solo home run to right field to tie the score.
Florida’s Cassidy McLellan followed with a solo home run of her own that seemed to be interfered with by a fan in the home fourth. Georgia Tech coach Aileen Morales let the umpires hear it after she was protesting against the home run. Third base umpire Marty Abezetian decided he had heard enough and ejected Morales from the game.
The Gator faithful made sure Morales heard it on her way out. The fans got rowdy and did the “Gator Chomp” at her as Morales exited while trading words with some fans.
Grover poured some salt into the Yellow Jackets’ wound with a solo no-doubter out to left field to make it 3-1, her team-leading fifth homer. Madison Walker joined the party with her first home run as a Gator, a two-run shot to extend Florida’s lead to 5-1 in the fifth.
“Ella [Wesolowski] gets in the game, she gets a hit. Madison [Walker] gets in the game, boom she gets a hit. We have a lot of really good bats,” Walton said. “Kendall had a slow start, but then had one of the best weekend’s anyone has had.”
The Gators are back at it Tuesday when they face the University of North Florida (11-1) for a midweek split series. Game 1 will be played at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium at 6 p.m. Florida then travels to Jacksonville for a 6 p.m. rematch Wednesday at the UNF Softball Complex.
Category: College Softball, Feature Sports News, Gator Sports, Gators Softball
