Fueled
by a two-out rally in the fifth, the No. 3/4 Florida softball squad completed a
weekend sweep over the Auburn Tigers with a 5-2 victory Sunday for UF’s fifth
SEC series sweep of the season. The Orange and Blue have won all seven league
series thus far in 2012, and improved to 38-5 (18-2 SEC) on the season with the
Sunday win in front of 1,129 fans at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
Freshman
Sami Fagan (Dunnellon, Fla.) came through with a two-out, two-RBI double
to left field for UF’s first two runs in the fifth, while classmate Lauren
Haeger (Peoria, Ariz.) followed up with a two-run blast to take UF up, 4-0,
after a three-hit, four-run stanza. The Gators would add one more run in the
sixth on a Kasey Fagan (Dunnellon, Fla.) sacrifice fly before Auburn put
up its two runs in the top of the seventh.
Gator
sophomore hurler Hannah Rogers (Lake Wales, Fla.) earned the nod in the
circle for the Orange and Blue in the series finale, fanning five with one K
each in the first, second, third, fourth and sixth innings. Rogers went the
distance, giving up six hits – three in the final frame – and two runs in the
seventh, to improve to 22-3 on the season for Florida.
Tiger
starter Angel Bunner moved to 11-4 with the loss after surrendering five Gator
hits and UF’s first four runs, while walking two Florida batters through the
first four and two-thirds innings before Lauren Schmalz came on in relief for
the final 1.1. Schmalz was effective, recording AU’s lone two Ks of the day.
Haeger
finished the day with a team-leading two hits (2-for-4, two RBI), while S.
Fagan was 1-for-3 with a run and two RBI. Notably, K. Fagan had two outfield
assists for the Orange and Blue in what was a defensive game from the get-go.
Four scoreless innings kicked off the clash Sunday between the Gators and
Tigers before Auburn came up with the first base hit in the third. Both teams
finished the afternoon with six hits apiece.
