Sophomore right-hander Bobby Wahl fired eight
scoreless innings as No. 16 Ole Miss (19-7/4-3 SEC) blanked No. 1 Florida
(23-3/5-2 SEC), 3-0, in front of a season-high 9,311 fans on Friday night at
Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field to claim the opener of the three-game
series.
Wahl (5-0) limited the Gators to a pair of
singles and junior Brett Huber overcame a leadoff triple in the ninth by senior
Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) to preserve the shutout and pick up
his sixth save. It marked the first time that UF had been shut out since March
8, 2011, by Georgia Southern (7-0).
The Rebels reached junior righty Hudson
Randall (Atlanta, Ga.) (3-1) for three runs in the first inning on an RBI
single by junior Alex Yarbrough (2-for-4) and a two-run homer by senior Matt Snyder
(2-for-4). Junior Tanner Mathis had singled up the middle on Randall’s first
pitch of the game and was sacrificed to second on a bunt by sophomore Austin Anderson.
Mathis swiped third and scored on a base-hit into right field by Yarbrough.
Snyder followed with his fourth homer of the campaign to right field to give
the hosts a 3-0 lead.
Wahl retired the first two Gators of the
fourth on strikeouts before issuing back-to-back walks to juniors Mike
Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) and Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach,
Fla.). The right-hander had freshman Taylor Gushue (Boca Raton, Fla.)
pop up in foul territory to end the frame.
After Randall recorded the first two outs in
the fifth, Snyder and sophomore Will Allen delivered consecutive singles.
Randall stranded the runners with a strikeout of senior Zach Kirksey.
Randall allowed eight hits and three runs
over six innings, with four strikeouts and a walk. Freshman Bobby Poyner
(Wellington, Fla.) entered the game prior to the Rebels’ seventh at bat and
surrendered a one-out single to senior pinch hitter Blake Newalu, who moved
into scoring position with a stolen base. Poyner worked out of further trouble
by having Yarbrough and Snyder ground out.
Freshman Casey Turgeon (Palm Harbor,
Fla.) drew a leadoff walk in the eighth but Wahl responded with strikeouts of
junior Vickash Ramjit (Miami, Fla.) and junior pinch hitter Jeff
Moyer (Winter Springs, Fla.). The righty had a fielder’s choice by junior Nolan
Fontana (Winter Garden, Fla.) force Turgeon at second base to complete the
frame.
Poyner set down the first two Rebels in the
home part of the inning and was replaced by freshman Ryan Harris
(Jupiter, Fla.). Over 1.2 innings, Poyner permitted one hit and had one
strikeout. Harris threw one pitch and junior Andrew Mistone grounded out to end
the inning.
Wahl departed after an eight-inning stint in
which he permitted two singles, with six strikeouts and three walks. Pigott began
the ninth with a triple to left field off Huber, his second-straight game with
a three-bagger. The reliever countered with a strikeout of senior Preston
Tucker (Tampa, Fla.), a fly out by Zunino and a grounder by Johnson to
secure the win. The Rebels held a 9-3 advantage in hits and neither team
committed any errors.
Saturday’s pitching matchup starting at 2:30
p.m. ET will pit Johnson (4-0, 3.13) against Ole Miss senior righty R.J. Hively
(3-1, 1.47)
Game Notes
·
The
three hits by Florida were a season low.
·
The
Gators had given up a total of eight runs in the first inning in their first 25
games.
·
UF
is now 6-2 away from Gainesville, while Ole Miss improved to 15-4 at home this year.
·
The
Rebels have now tossed back-to-back shutouts after defeating Jackson State,
12-0, on Tuesday night.
·
Florida
is 10-3 against ranked teams in 2012.
