Despite
pounding out six hits as a team, led by freshman Bailey Castro’s (Pembroke
Pines, Fla.) 2-for-3 performance Wednesday, the No. 4 Florida softball squad
dropped just its third game of the season, falling 4-1 to No. 21 USF in a
mid-week, non-conference match up in front of 1,089 Gator fans at Katie
Seashole Pressly Stadium. For the second time this season, the two squads met
as Florida out-lasted USF, 3-2, in eight innings Feb. 12 in season-opening
tournament action in Tampa.
A
sharper USF squad connected for eight hits, capitalized on two Gator defensive
miscues and rallied behind ace Sara Nevins, who owned the nation’s best ERA
(0.55) entering the match-up, to snap Florida’s 16-game home win streak. The
Bulls jumped on top of the Gators from the get-go, putting up two quick runs in
the first inning, while following with two in the third for their four overall to
improve to 30-5 on the campaign. The Gators moved to 29-3 overall and are now
4-3 on the season against Top-25 competition.
For
the 12th time this season, Florida freshman Lauren Haeger (Peoria,
Ariz.) earned the nod in the circle, working her sixth complete contest of the
year. Haeger fanned four, but walked five and gave up two earned runs on eight
USF hits, shouldering her second loss of the season (9-2).
Like
Haeger, Nevins (17-2) went the distance, walking three and retiring three Gators
by strikeout. Nevins gave up two hits to Castro, who tallied her first
multiple-hit game donning a Gator uniform, while Haeger knocked in UF’s sole
run on a long ball in the fourth. Juniors Ensley Gammel (Bakersfield,
Calif.), Sam Holle (Tampa, Fla.) and Kelsey Horton (Valrico,
Fla.) had one hit apiece.
