No. 5 Florida Softball Wins Series vs. No. 13 Mississippi State in Walk-Off Fashion
Bottom of the seventh, bases loaded and another SEC series on the line.
Townsen Thomas knew this was her moment.
The redshirt freshman hit a ball into the infield and Taylor Shumaker beat out the ball to home, giving the Gators all they needed.
No. 5 Florida (36-5, 11-4 SEC) entered Sunday’s rubber match looking for revenge and got exactly that with a 5-4 walk-off victory against No. 13 Mississippi State.
Pitcher Keagan Rothrock got her second start of the weekend, and after a tricky third inning, shut down the Bulldogs offense. Rothrock (19-4) pitched her 13th complete game of the season, allowing four hits, four runs with two strikeouts.
Out-hit Saturday, Florida’s bats wasted no time. Kenleigh Cahalan got the Gators started in the first with an RBI double to score a speedy Shumaker from first base.
Mississippi State (33-9, 5-7 SEC) answered right back, but in an unusual way. Nadia Barbary hit a ball deep into left field that trickled off Thomas’ glove over the fence for a solo homer made it 1-1 in the second.
The Gators shook off that play as Ava Brown led the second off with a single in her first at-bat as a starter since her injury.
“I really felt the love, I needed the love,” Brown said about her return. “It felt good to feel that support.”
Following an error that scored a Gators run and a perfect bunt by Gabi Comia, Bulldogs coach Samantha Ricketts replaced Leila Ammon with Alyssa Faircloth.
Faircloth could not hold down Shumaker as she scored Kendall Grover with an RBI single in the second. Jocelyn Erickson added another run and gave Florida a 4-1 lead with a sacrifice fly that scored Ella Wesolowski.
“We played a little bit more to their weaknesses,” Florida coach Tim Walton said. “They had some weaknesses in their game, and we played to that today. You saw a couple things that we did that we haven’t done.”
The Bulldogs bit back in the third with back-to-back homers from Xiane Romero and Kiarra Sells to make it 4-3.
After three action packed innings, Rothrock and Faircloth found a rhythm and shut down both offenses, with only two hits being recorded in the last four innings of the game.
Mississippi State would not go down without a fight. With one out in the seventh, pinch hitter Taylor Troutman scored pinch runner Ally Supan with a sacrifice fly to tie the score, 4-4.
Facing one of the best pitchers in the country, Peja Goold, Florida did not falter after being on the other side of a walk-off situation last week against Arkansas. After Shumaker was hit by a pitch, Cahalan got the Gators’ first hit in four innings.
Walton made a gutsy decision to put in Giulia Desiderio to pinch hit, and she did not disappoint. The senior got a base hit into left field, loading the bases.
“Giulia just said to me today, coach, give me a chance. So we will,” Walton said.
Thomas secured the walk-off victory against the Bulldogs on a fielder’s choice, scoring Shumaker and giving the Gators their fourth SEC series victory.
Florida turns its attention to a midweek bout Wednesday with in-state rival USF. First pitch is set for 7 p.m.
Category: Feature Sports News, Gators Softball
