Gators tied for Eighth, McCumber tied for Second, Heading into Final Round of NCAA Championship

The University of Florida men’s golf team shot a second round 296 (+12), to sit in a tie for eighth place heading into the final round of the 2012 NCAA Championships played at Riviera Country Club. The top-eight teams following tomorrow’s final round will advance to the match play portion of the tournament and compete for the National Championship.

“We weren’t quite as good as we were yesterday but it’s all relative,” said head coach Buddy Alexander. “The cool thing about this tournament is that you don’t really know where you stand until after 36 holes. The good thing is that we put ourselves in a spot where we can make a run at it tomorrow.”

For the day, the Gators were again led by junior Tyler McCumber (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) who shot and even par round of 71 and sits at three-under for the tournament, good for a tie for second overall. After starting his day with a pair of pars on 10 and 11, McCumber made a birdie on the par-4 12th. The junior gave the stroke back with a bogey on 15 to drop to even on the day but quickly recovered carding a birdie on the next hole, the par-3 16th. After making the turn at one-under, 35, McCumber added a birdie on the par-5 first to get to two-under on the day. Unfortunately, McCumber gave the two-strokes back with a double at the difficult par-4 second. McCumber didn’t let the double fluster him as he steadily came in with seven-consecutive pars to post his second straight round of even par or better. McCumber will enter the final round two strokes behind Thomas Pieters of Illinois.

Junior T.J. Vogel (Cooper City, Fla.) and freshman Eric Banks (Truro, Canada) each recorded second round scores of 74 for the Orange and Blue. Vogel, who sits in a tie for 37th after two rounds, used two birdies against three bogeys and a double for his three-over round, while Banks had three birdies countered by six bogeys.

Senior Michael Furci (Sayville, N.Y.) posted the final counting score for UF with a six-over, 77, while freshman J.D. Tomlinson (Gainesville, Fla.) rounded out the Gators in the field with an 82.

“We’re going to go out tomorrow, play our game and try to put together a solid round and then see what happens,” Alexander said.

The Gators will return to the course tomorrow when they tee off beginning at noon PST, 3 p.m. EST. UF will be paired with USC and Illinois during the final round. Live scoring for the round and live video on select holes will be available through NCAA.com.

McCumber, Gators tied for Second After Day One of NCAA Championship

The University of Florida men’s golf team shot an opening round 288 (+4), to sit in a tie for second place overall at the 2012 NCAA Championships played at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. For the day, the Gators were led by junior Tyler McCumber (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) who shot a bogey-free 68 (-3) to sit in a tie for second place.

“It was a decent start for us,” said head coach Buddy Alexander. “We’ve been slow out of the gates all season and I thought we handled today pretty solidly and made some good adjustments after our practice round.”

“Tyler played a great round of golf today,” Alexander continued. “To not make any bogeys on a course like this is very impressive and shows how well he played today.”

McCumber started his day with six consecutive pars before breaking through with a birdie at the par-4 seventh. Two more pars at eight and nine saw McCumber go out in 34 (-1). To start his homeward half, McCumber made birdie on the par-4 10th. After a stretch of seven-consecutive pars, McCumber carded a birdie on the difficult, par-4, 18th to post his 17th round at or under par on the season.

After a tough opening nine, senior Michael Furci (Sayville, N.Y.) was able to rally to post a one-over. Furci, who had three bogeys on the front, was able to regroup coming in by making two birdies and seven pars to post his 72.

“Michael had a big back nine for us,” Alexander explained. “We were struggling there for a bit and he kept us in it with his play which was huge.”

Junior T.J. Vogel (Cooper City, Fla.) also finished his opening round with a 72 after an up-and-down day where he made a team-best four birdies which were countered by five bogeys.

Freshmen J.D. Tomlinson (Gainesville, Fla.) and Eric Banks (Truro, Canada) each posted rounds of 76 (+5) to round out the UF lineup.

“We’re going out in the afternoon tomorrow and we’ll probably face some wind and tougher conditions, but we need to be able to stay focused and play our game and hopefully put together a round that puts us in contention going into the final round,” Alexander said.

The Gators will return to the course tomorrow when they tee off beginning at 12:20 PST, 3:20 EST. Live scoring for the second round will be available through NCAA.com.

Gator Baseball Earns No. 1 National Seed, Hosts Bethune-Cookman On Friday

The University of Florida baseball team learned on Monday afternoon that it was awarded the top national seed for the 2012 NCAA Baseball Tournament that begins on Friday at McKethan Stadium. Making their 28th Regional appearance and fifth in a row under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan, the top-seeded Gators (42-18) will face fourth-seeded Bethune-Cookman (34-25) at 7 p.m. Second-seeded Georgia Tech (36-24) will meet third-seeded College of Charleston (37-20) earlier in the day at 1 p.m. The entire Gainesville Regional will be carried on ESPN3. This marks the fourth-consecutive year that UF has been a national seed (No. 8 in 2009, No. 3 in 2010 and No. 2 in 2011).

“Obviously, this is a great time of the year for everybody,” O’Sullivan said. “We’re excited to be in it. We’re excited to be home. Obviously, we’re going to have to play well if we want to advance. Our only concern right now is on Bethune (Cookman) and hopefully we have a great week of practice. I like this team going forward, but it’s one game at a time and we’re going to have to play well. Our regional is a tough one and we’ll just worry about one game at a time.”

The Regional continues through Sunday, with a final game to be played Monday night, if necessary. The Gainesville Regional winner will face the winner of the Raleigh Regional in a Super Regional series next weekend. The eight Super Regional winners advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

UF is 80-58 (.580) all-time in NCAA Tournament action and has reached the CWS seven times: 1988, 1991, 1996, 1998, 2005, 2010 and 2011. Last season, the Gators defeated Manhattan (17-3) and Miami (Fla.) twice (5-4 and 11-4) to sweep the Gainesville Regional before downing Mississippi State twice in three games to win the Gainesville Super Regional. UF claimed its bracket in Omaha to reach the CWS Championship Finals for the second time in school history and fell to South Carolina.

2012 NCAA Gainesville Regional Schedule

Friday, June 1
Game 1: 1 p.m. - No. 3 College of Charleston (37-20) vs. No. 2 Georgia Tech (36-24) (ESPN3)
Game 2: 7 p.m. - No. 4 Bethune-Cookman (34-25) vs. No. 1 FLORIDA (42-18) (ESPN3)

Saturday, June 2
Game 3: 1 p.m. - Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 (ESPN3)
Game 4: 7 p.m. - Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 (ESPN3)

Sunday, June 3
Game 5: 12 p.m. - Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4 (ESPN2/ESPN3)
Game 6: 7 p.m. - Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5 (ESPN3)

Monday, June 4
Game 7: (if necessary) – 7 p.m. - Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6 (ESPN3)

The national top eight seeds are Florida (42-18), UCLA (42-14), Florida State (43-15), Baylor (44-14), Oregon (42-17), North Carolina (44-14), LSU (43-16) and South Carolina (40-17).

Allie Will Has NCAA Singles Run End in Semifinals

Florida’s Allie Will (Boca Raton, Fla.) fought back and forced a third set, but couldn’t close out Stanford’s third-ranked Nicole Gibbs, who won 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, in the semifinals of the NCAA Women’s Tennis Singles Championships on Sunday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga.

“Allie played her best match of the entire tournament,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “It was a great match against Nicole. You have to give a lot of credit to Nicole, she found a way in the third set. There was a pivotal game when she was up 3-1 and made it 4-1. She found a way to get that game and that was the difference. If it had been 3-2 it would have been a different match.

“Allie really made it tough and physical in the second set with some deep, big heavy forehands in the second set and was able to wear Nicole down a little,” Thornqvist continued. “Then there was the 10-minute, heat-rule break and I think Nicole got her legs back a bit and got off to a hot start in the third set.

“I’m really, really proud of Allie. She played better each match during this tournament,” Thornqvist shared.

Gibbs jumped out to a 3-0 lead to start the match, up one break, and the rest of the frame was on-serve, before the Cardinal was able to get her second break against the top-seeded Gator and take the first set.

Will fought back by breaking Gibbs twice to begin the second set en route to a quick 3-0 lead. Gibbs broke back and the competitors held serve for the next three games before Gibbs broke again and evened the set at 4-all. Will dug deep and broke back on her second chance  and served out to force a deciding third.

Will had one break point in the first game of the third set, but Gibbs staved that off and held, before capitalizing on her second break point to take a 2-0 lead. Will then blitzed back by losing just one point on Gibbs’ serve, but couldn’t hold and fell behind a break and 3-1. Gibbs then held for a 4-1 lead after Will had forced duce and then staved off a game-point in the sixth game and broke again for the 5-1 lead. Will came right back and won eight of the next 11 points and cut the deficit to 5-3, but Gibbs served out at love to advance to Monday’s final where she will play Stanford teammate Mallory Burdette for the singles title.

This was the third collegiate meeting between Will and Gibbs, each of which have gone three sets.

Will won this year’s regular-season dual match decision 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 on Feb. 12 in Stanford and Gibbs took last year’s meeting on May 27 in the round of 16 at the 2011 NCAA Singles Championships, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3).

Will ends her junior campaign with a 26-3 record, including a 109-13 mark in her career.

UF Selected To Host NCAA Baseball Regional; 64-Team Field To Be Announced Monday

The University of Florida learned on Sunday afternoon that it was awarded one of 16 NCAA Baseball Regional sites. Four teams will compete at McKethan Stadium in a double-elimination tournament starting on Friday, June 1. The winner will advance to the best-of-three Super Regional to be held the following weekend at eight different sites. The 64-team field for the NCAA Tournament will be announced live on ESPNU on Monday at 12 p.m.

“We’re extremely happy about hosting games in Gainesville,” head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “It is great news for the program, our players, the University and the fans and we appreciate the support.”

No. 2 Florida (42-18) advanced to the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference Tournament for the third year in a row after tying for third in the league’s regular-season standings. The Gators have been a fixture in the top-five of the national polls all season under fifth-year skipper O’Sullivan.

UF will be hosting NCAA Regional action for the fourth-straight year for the first time in school history, as it swept through the bracket last June with wins over Manhattan (17-3) and Miami (Fla.) (5-4 and 11-4) to advance to Super Regionals for the fifth time in eight years. The Gators then defeated SEC rival Mississippi State twice in three games to advance to the NCAA College World Series for the seventh time, where it finished as the national runner-up to South Carolina.

McKethan Stadium has been the site of 10 NCAA Regionals during its existence, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2011. Prior to the 1999 season, when the current NCAA Super Regional format was introduced, the Orange and Blue advanced to the CWS three times it hosted NCAA play: 1991, 1996 and 1998.

The other 15 schools chosen as host venues include: Arizona, Baylor, Florida State, LSU, Miami (Fla.), North Carolina, North Carolina State, Oregon, Purdue, Rice, South Carolina, Stanford, Texas A&M, UCLA and Virginia.

Ninth-Inning Rally Lifts Vanderbilt Over No. 2 UF Baseball & Into SEC Tourney Title Game, 8-6

Vanderbilt (33-25) rallied from a one-run deficit with five runs on five hits in the top of the ninth and withstood a furious rally by No. 2 Florida (42-18) in the bottom of the inning to take an 8-6 victory in semifinal action at the 2012 SEC Tournament at Regions Park on Saturday afternoon. The Commodores will square off against No. 25 Mississippi State (38-22) in tomorrow’s championship game at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

With the Gators holding a 4-3 advantage entering the ninth, junior Austin Maddox (Jacksonville, Fla.) (3-3) was called upon to close the game. Freshman pinch hitter Connor Castellano led off with a double to right field and was sacrificed to third by junior pinch hitter Andrew Harris. Maddox hit sophomore Tony Kemp (1-for-2, two runs) for runners on first and third and junior Mike Yastrzemski’s (2-for-4) squeeze bunt scored Castellano with the tying run and pushed Kemp to second base. Junior Mike Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) threw out Yastrzemski trying to steal for the second out, with Kemp taking third on the play. Junior Anthony Gomez (2-for-5, two RBI) put the Commodores on top with an RBI single into left field that plated Kemp and then stole second base. Sophomore Conrad Gregor was walked intentionally and Vanderbilt executed a double steal for two runners in scoring position before Maddox issued another intentional walk to sophomore Spencer Navin that loaded the bases. The Commodores then pulled off a triple steal, with Gomez stealing home, Gregor taking third and Navin advancing to second. Freshman Will Cooper stroked a two-run single into right field that increased his club’s lead to 8-4 but was thrown out attempting to reach third base to end the frame.

With UF down to its final three outs, junior Nolan Fontana (Winter Garden, Fla.) (2-for-4) laced a one-out single into right field but was erased at second base on a fielder’s choice by senior Preston Tucker (Tampa, Fla.) (1-for-5, three runs). Junior Mike Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) (2-for-5, two runs) followed with a double down the left-field line to move Tucker to third base and junior Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach, Fla.) (4-for-5) collected his fourth hit and fourth RBI of the day with a single up the middle off of junior Will Clinard (7-2) to bring the Gators within 8-5. Senior Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) singled through the left side to score Zunino with the sixth run and pushed redshirt freshman pinch runner Connor Mitchell (Tampa, Fla.) into scoring position. Freshman Casey Turgeon (Palm Harbor, Fla.) (2-for-3) made it four-straight hits for the Orange and Blue with a base-hit into left field that loaded the bases with two down and forced a call to the bullpen. Junior Drew VerHagen came in for Clinard (1.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R) and threw one pitch that retired freshman Justin Shafer (Lake Wales, Fla.) on a fly ball to right field to complete the contest and register his second save.  

Vanderbilt had grabbed a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning against sophomore Karsten Whitson (Chipley, Fla.) courtesy of one hit and a pair of errors. Kemp began the game with a double into left center field and wound up scoring when Yastrzemski’s sacrifice bunt was thrown away by Whitson and junior Vickash Ramjit (Miami, Fla.) misfired on a relay throw to the plate. With Yastrzemski on second, a wild pitch moved him to third and Gomez brought him home with an RBI grounder.

The Gators answered with a two-out RBI double by Johnson in the home part of the inning to cut the deficit to 2-1. Tucker had roped a one-out single into right field off of sophomore starter Kevin Ziomek and came around to score on a hit-and-run when Johnson’s 11th two-bagger of the season landed in left center. Ziomek had Pigott fly out to left field to complete the inning.

Junior Connor Harrell (2-for-5) provided Vanderbilt with a 3-1 advantage in the second inning with a double into right center that scored senior Riley Reynolds, who had led off with a pinch-hit single up the middle. Junior Jack Lupo laid down a sacrifice bunt that moved Harrell to third and Whitson responded by having freshman Vince Conde ground out but then walked Kemp. With runners on the corners and two down, Kemp moved into scoring position with his 17th stolen base before Whitson had Yastrzemski ground out.

Although the Commodores loaded the bases with one down in the third, senior Greg Larson (Longwood, Fla.) pitched out of the jam. Gregor and Navin had consecutive one-out singles and a walk to Reynolds loaded the bases, prompting a pitching change. Larson replaced Whitson (2.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB), tying former Gator Darren O’Day (2003-06) for second on the school’s all-time list with his 117th appearance. The righty had Harrell hit into an inning-ending 5-3 double play to keep the Gators down by a pair of runs.

Johnson tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the stanza with a two-run double into the gap in right center. Fontana drew a four-pitch walk to start the frame but was erased on a strange fielder’s choice, as Tucker’s fly ball was lost in the sun but was picked up quickly enough to throw Fontana out at second base. Zunino doubled to left field, advancing Tucker to third, and Johnson connected on his season-best second double of the contest to even the contest. Ziomek (2.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R) retired Pigott on a line drive to left field and was replaced by freshman Brian Miller, who surrendered a base-hit into left field by Turgeon for runners on the corners. The reliever struck out Shafer to preserve the stalemate.

After Larson set down the Commodores in order for the first time in the game in the top of the fourth, Florida seized a 4-3 lead on an RBI single by Fontana. Ramjit had started things off with a bunt single up the third-base line and went to second on a throwing error on the play by Miller. Freshman Josh Tobias (Greensboro, N.C.) sacrificed Ramjit to third with a bunt and Fontana smacked a single with the infield drawn in to plate Ramjit. After Tucker flew out to the warning track in right field, Fontana was caught stealing for the first time this season after 11-consecutive thefts.

Gomez had a one-out single up the middle in the fifth but was gunned down by Zunino trying to steal second. Gregor earned a free pass with two down and Larson had Navin go down swinging on strikes.

Larson fanned Conde to begin the seventh and junior Steven Rodriguez (Miami, Fla.) came in from the bullpen. Over four strong innings, Larson permitted just one hit and totaled three strikeouts. Rodriguez plunked Kemp and a base-hit by Yastrzemski that hit the umpire left two runners aboard with one down. A grounder by Gomez pushed both runners into scoring position and Rodriguez struck out Gregor to keep the Gators ahead by a run.

Freshman Jared Miller replaced Brian Miller (3.1 IP, 5 H, 1 R) prior to Florida’s seventh at bat and induced three-straight fly-outs. Rodriguez tossed a 1-2-3 eighth and then Pigott reached on a one-out throwing error by third baseman Conde and stole second. A walk to Turgeon gave the Gators a pair of runners aboard and Clinard was summoned to take over for Miller (1.1 IP). After a long battle, Shafer deposited a base-hit into shallow center field to fill the bags with one down. Clinard had Ramjit hit into an inning-ending 4-3 double play to hold the margin at 4-3.

Gator Women's Golf Finishes 12th at NCAA Championship

The No. 12 University of Florida women’s golf team finished 12th at the NCAA Championship after shooting a final round 10-over 298. UF, who finished with a 1190 (302-293-297-298, +38), has now recorded consecutive top-15 finishes at the NCAA Championship for the first time since 2006. Junior Isabelle Lendl (Goshen, Conn.) shot a six-under, 66, to pace the entire field on the final day at the Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tenn.

Twelfth is a solid finish, and I am very proud of this group of young women. The team came into the tournament hoping to do big things, and we didn't quite bring our A games all four days.” head coach Jan Dowling said. “The girls gained invaluable experience playing in their second national championship in a row and to be somewhat in the mix is a great experience. Posting good numbers on this tough of a golf course is an accomplishment.”

Lendl carded one eagle and five birdies against one bogey during the fourth and final round of the NCAA Championship. Lendl, who finished in a tie for 51st, shot a combined five-under in her final two rounds. Lendl’s 66 tied for the lowest round of the tournament.

“She is a wonderful example of persistence and hard work. I can’t be more proud of her playing the way she did the last two days, really, and particularly today. I just can’t be more proud of her being able to do that,” Dowling added. “She deserves all the credit. She works her butt off and we believe in her. You have to be doing a lot of really good things to shoot a 66. She should be very proud and I think this will catapult her into a great summer and a great senior year.”

Senior Andrea Watts (Bradenton, Fla.) closed out her final collegiate tournament with a three-over 75. Watts finished with a tournament total of 308 (76-77-80, +20) and tied for 98th. 

Freshman Camilla Hedberg (Sitges, Spain) handed in a tournament total 206 (76-69-74-77,+8) and finished in a tie for 33rd while senior Evan Jensen (Belleair, Fla.) finished tied for 63rd with a 301 (74-73-74-80, +13) in her final collegiate event.

Junior Mia Piccio (Bacolod City, Philippines), who tied for 98th, carded four-day total of 306 (76-74-76-80, +18).

“The seniors did a wonderful job this year. They both contributed in different ways. I think they can look back on their four years and can be very proud and they can look back on their senior year and be very proud,” said Dowling “They’ve done a lot for our program, they’ve been great role models and they’re leaving the team in a better place than where it started. I’m very happy for them and I wish them the best in their futures.”

No. 2 Alabama held on to the top spot with a tournament total of 1171 (+19). The Tide held off No. 4 USC by one strokes. Chirapat Jao-Javanil of Oklahoma won individual medalist honors with a tournament total of 282 (69-73-70-70, -6).

The Gators finished this season with six top-five finishes this season, which is two more than last year and the most since the 2007-08 season. The 4th place finish at the SEC Championship and the T4th place finish at the NCAA Regional are the best finishes at those respective tournaments under Jan Dowling. It's the best finish for the Gators at those events since 2008 when UF won both the SEC and the Regional tournaments.

“This is a stepping stone to becoming a team that is consistently contending for national championships,” Dowling explained. “We finished twelfth while not playing our best and I think that’s a testament to the team and their hard work and we’re looking forward to next year already. Our players are building this into a great program and the future is bright.”

For complete coverage of UF’s women’s golf program visit GatorZone.com, follow @GatorZoneGolf on Twitter and ‘like’ the University of Florida Women’s Golf page on Facebook.

No. 2 UF Baseball Eliminates No. 4 South Carolina, 7-2; Faces Vanderbilt In SEC Tourney Semifinals

Junior left-hander Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach, Fla.) notched the first complete game of his career and was supported by an 11-hit offensive attack as No. 2 Florida (42-17) ousted No. 4 South Carolina (40-17) from the 2012 SEC Tournament, 7-2, on Friday night in front of 9,067 fans at Regions Park. Johnson (7-4) limited the Gamecocks to two runs on five hits and threw 89 pitches in going the distance. He also registered five strikeouts and permitted zero walks in the first complete game by a Gator at the SEC Tourney since Bryan Augenstein accomplished the feat in a 3-2 victory over Alabama on May 24, 2007.

With the win, head coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s club advances to tomorrow’s semifinal round for the third-straight year and will meet Vanderbilt (32-25) again 30 minutes after the conclusion of the matchup between No. 12 Kentucky (43-15) and No. 25 Mississippi State (37-22) that starts at 1 p.m. ET. Sophomore righty Karsten Whitson (Chipley, Fla.) (3-0, 3.07) will oppose Commodore sophomore lefty Kevin Ziomek (5-6, 4.79) in team’s second encounter in Hoover. The action will be shown on CSS, Channel 259 on the Cox Communications cable system in the Gainesville/Ocala area, and can be heard on Country 103.7 The Gator with Jeff Cardozo and Mick Hubert. Tomorrow’s winners will play in the championship game on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

Junior Mike Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) (1-for-3) drove in three runs, highlighted by a two-run homer in the third inning, while junior Nolan Fontana (Winter Garden, Fla.) (2-for-3) scored three runs out of the leadoff spot and freshman Casey Turgeon (Palm Harbor, Fla.) (2-for-4) had a two-run single during a three-run fifth stanza.

The Gators seized a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning against junior Colby Holmes (6-1) on a fielder’s choice by Zunino. Fontana had opened the game with a double into the right-field corner and senior Preston Tucker (Tampa, Fla.) (2-for-5) followed with a single just beyond the reach of junior second baseman Chase Vergason. Zunino sent a grounder to first base that junior Christian Walker fielded and threw out Tucker at second base, enabling Fontana to score the game’s opening run.

A two-out RBI single by freshman Josh Tobias (Greensboro, N.C.) (2-for-4) provided Florida with a 2-0 advantage in the second inning. Turgeon led off with a base-hit into right field and advanced to second on a grounder by junior Vickash Ramjit (Miami, Fla.). With two down, Tobias roped a single into left field that plated Turgeon but was thrown out trying to reach second base.

Zunino crushed a two-run homer to left field with one down in the third to boost UF’s lead to 4-0. Fontana drew a leadoff walk and Zunino socked a 0-1 pitch out of the yard for his SEC-leading 16th round-tripper of the season to end the night for Holmes (2.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R) in favor of freshman Evan Beal.  

Johnson retired the first eight Gamecock hitters of the contest before Vergason (2-for-3) sliced a two-out single into right field in the bottom of the third. The left-hander responded by having freshman Joey Pankake fly out to straightaway center field.

The Gators tacked on three more runs in the fifth on a bases-loaded walk to Johnson and a two-run single by Turgeon to build a 7-0 margin. Fontana and Tucker had consecutive one-out singles and moved over on a wild pitch by Beal before Zunino was walked intentionally to load the bases. A free pass to Johnson brought home Fontana to increase UF’s lead to 5-0 and Beal countered with a strikeout of senior Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.). Turgeon came through on a 0-2 count with a single into left center that brought across Tucker and Zunino and prompted a pitching change. Junior Nolan Belcher replaced Beal (2.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R) and had freshman Justin Shafer (Lake Wales, Fla.) fly out to right field to complete the frame.

Freshman Tanner English beat out an infield single to start USC’s sixth and went to third on a base-hit down the left-field line by Vergason. Johnson induced a 5-4-3 double play by Pankake that put the Gamecocks on the board as English came in for a 7-1 score.

Shafer began the eighth with an infield single and went to second on a throwing error on the play by sophomore Forrest Koumas, who had relieved Belcher (2.1 IP, 1 H). Koumas worked out of the jam by setting down Ramjit and Tobias and then picked Shafer off second base to end the frame.

Fontana started the ninth with a walk and Zunino was hit by a pitch with one down before Koumas (1.1 IP, 1 H) was taken out with an arm issue. Senior Logan Munson had freshman pinch hitter Taylor Gushue (Boca Raton, Fla.) fly out to center field, pushing Fontana to third. However, the lefty had Pigott pop up to Walker to complete the inning.

Johnson recorded the first two outs in the bottom of the ninth before junior Evan Marzilli doubled down the left-field line and Walker had an RBI single to finalize the 7-2 count. Florida held an 11-5 advantage in hits and played flawless defense.  

Florida Lacrosse Drops Heartbreaker in NCAA Semifinal to Syracuse, 14-13, in Double-Overtime

The Florida lacrosse team had its season come to a heartbreaking end on Friday night in the NCAA Semifinals, falling in double-overtime to Syracuse, 14-13, at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium in Stony Brook, N.Y. The Gators finished the season with a 19-3 record and the program’s first-ever appearance in the Final Four.

“Congratulations to Syracuse [on advancing to the title game],” said head coach Amanda O’Leary. “It was a great game and a game of runs. They scored when it counted and had a fantastic comeback. We knew they wouldn’t give up and they competed hard. I’m proud of my team and proud of our season as this is just the third year of the program.”

After playing to a 13-13 tie in regulation, neither team was able to score a goal in the first overtime, although Florida’s Gabi Wiegand (Bay Shore, N.Y.) appeared to net a possible game-winner with nine seconds left before Syracuse called for a stick check. Officials deemed that Wiegand’s stick was illegal and the goal was taken off the board, forcing a second overtime period and sudden-death scenario.

“[The stick check was] a smart play by Syracuse,” said junior captain Brittany Dashiell (Bel Air, Md.). “We couldn’t do anything about it; just keep playing and try to get the next ground ball, the next draw control.”

For the second time this season, Florida and Syracuse needed a second overtime to decide the winner. On March 3, the Orange held off the Gators, 12-11, in Gainesville, UF’s last loss entering tonight’s semifinal matchup. Unfortunately for Florida, the result was no different this time around, as Syracuse’s Sarah Holden scored the game-winner 58 seconds into the sudden-death period, securing the Orange’s first-ever berth in the title game.

Holden led Syracuse with four goals on the night, while Alyssa Murray and Michelle Tumolo each had three goals. The Orange outshot Florida, 43-24, and held a 19-6 advantage in ground balls. Both teams finished with 16 draw controls.

Freshman Shannon Gilroy, from nearby Northport, N.Y., led the Gators with five goals and an assist on the night and Dashiell added four goals and three ground balls. Goalie Mikey Meagher (Liverpool, N.Y.) finished with a school-record-tying 15 saves, including 10 in the first half.

“[Mikey] literally kept us in the game [early in the first half] after a few doorstep saves,” said O’Leary. “She made a huge save for us from her knees as well. Mikey played a tremendous game, and was a shining star over 60 minutes.”

Dashiell got things started early in the game, converting a pass from Gilroy to give Florida the early lead. Syracuse controlled possession for a long stretch after the Gators’ goal and Meagher withheld a barrage of shots for nearly five minutes before Katie Webster got the Orange on the board at the 22:37 mark in the first half.

Wiegand gave Florida the lead again with an unassisted goal at the 17:23 mark, and then Gilroy notched her first of the game just 13 seconds later for a 3-1 lead. Tumolo cut into the Gators’ lead with her first goal of the game, but UF responded when Kitty Cullen (Rockville, Md.) assisted on a goal from Nora Barry (Marcellus, N.Y.), and the Gators regained a two-goal advantage. Syracuse again cut it to one goal at 4-3 after Tumolo assisted on Devon Collins’ goal, but then Gilroy scored three-straight goals to close the half and Florida entered the locker room with a 7-3 lead.

The Gators’ momentum continued into the opening minutes of the second half, as Caroline Chesterman (South Nyack, N.Y.) and Dashiell scored back-to-back goals to put Florida ahead 9-3 less than two minutes into the half. Syracuse’s Katie Webster stopped Florida’s five-goal run, but Ashley Bruns (Ellicott City, Md.) and Dashiell notched two more for the Gators to build an 11-4 lead with 21:34 remaining in the game.

The two teams traded goals as Tumolo and Dashiell each scored again and Florida had a seven-goal lead at 12-5 with 17:15 to play, but Syracuse would not be denied. With 11:38 remaining in the game, Collins scored her second goal of the game and the Orange built off the momentum, scoring twice more to cut the lead to four goals at 12-8 with less than eight minutes left.

Gilroy seemingly halted the momentum 30 seconds later with her fifth goal, giving Florida a 13-8 lead, but it would be the final goal of the night for the Gators. Syracuse rallied in the final seven minutes, scoring six unanswered goals. Playing two men up after a pair of Gator yellow cards, Holden notched the game-tying goal off a free-position shot with 30 seconds left  to end regulation tied at 13-13.

Florida had the possession that it wanted in the first overtime period, holding the ball for one final shot before heading to sudden-death overtime. As Wiegand drove to the cage, she was fouled and awarded a free-position attempt, which she got past Syracuse goalie Kelsey Richardson only to have the goal called back after the stick check.

Florida tops Auburn 6-1 in SEC tourney

Sophomore right-hander Jonathon Crawford (Okeechobee, Fla.) established a career high with nine strikeouts and freshman Justin Shafer (Lake Wales, Fla.) (2-for-4) drove in three runs to lead second-ranked Florida (41-16) to a 6-1 victory over Auburn (30-27) in the opening round of the 2012 SEC Tournament on Tuesday at Regions Park. UF broke open a 2-1 game with a three-run sixth that was highlighted by a two-run double by freshman Casey Turgeon (Palm Harbor, Fla.) and its pitching staff limited the SEC’s top hitting team to three hits.   The third-seeded Gators will enjoy an off-day before returning to action on Thursday night in the fourth game of the day against second-seeded South Carolina, fifth-seeded Vanderbilt or eighth-seeded Georgia. The Commodores and Bulldogs play tonight and the winner will meet the Gamecocks tomorrow.   Shafer provided the Gators with a 2-0 lead in the second inning with a two-out, two-RBI single off senior Jon Luke Jacobs (5-4). Junior Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach, Fla.) (2-for-4, two runs) and senior Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) (2-for-3, two runs) opened the frame with consecutive singles into center field and were sacrificed into scoring position by Turgeon. Jacobs struck out junior Vickash Ramjit (Miami, Fla.) and Shafer roped a 3-2 pitch into left field that brought home both of his teammates.   Auburn answered in the third on a sacrifice fly by senior Creede Simpson that cut the deficit to 2-1. Sophomore Bobby Andrews led off with an infield single and sophomore Zach Alvord reached on a throwing error by junior Nolan Fontana (Winter Garden, Fla.) before sophomore Jay Gonzalez laid down a sacrifice bunt to move his teammates over. Simpson lofted a sacrifice fly into center field to score Andrews and Crawford fanned sophomore Ryan Tella on three pitches to end the frame.   AU senior Justin Bryant drew a leadoff walk in the fourth and went to second on a grounder by redshirt sophomore Patrick Savage. Crawford had sophomore Dan Glevenyak line out to freshman third baseman Josh Tobias (Greensboro, N.C.) and then caught sophomore Blake Austin looking on strikes to strand the runner.   Crawford struck out Tella to open the sixth, matching his career high of eight K set at Miami (Fla.) on March 4. After Bryant earned a one-out free pass, Crawford fanned Savage for his ninth strikeout to notch a personal best. Glevenyak was hit by a pitch for two Tigers aboard and junior Steven Rodriguez (Miami, Fla.) was summoned from the bullpen. Over 5.2 innings in his SEC Tourney debut, Crawford allowed two hits and an unearned run, with nine strikeouts and four walks. Rodriguez set down junior pinch hitter Cullen Wacker on strikes to preserve the Gators’ advantage.   Turgeon delivered a key two-run double and Shafer chipped in with a two-out RBI single in the home part of the sixth to expand Florida’s lead to 5-1. Johnson and Pigott had consecutive one-out singles and Turgeon’s eighth two-bagger of the year into the gap in right center increased the Gators’ margin to three runs and ended the tenure of Jacobs (5.1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 6 K, 2 BB). Junior Slade Smith had Ramjit ground out and Shafer blooped a base-knock into right field to drive in Turgeon and pick up his third RBI.   Junior Mike Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) gave the Gators another insurance run with a two-out double in the seventh that scored Fontana for a 6-1 cushion. Fontana had singled with one down, advanced to second on a wild pitch by Smith and took third on a grounder by senior Preston Tucker (Tampa, Fla.). Zunino collected his SEC-leading 25th double into the right-field corner to bring home Fontana.   Rodriguez worked 1.2 scoreless and hitless innings, with a couple of strikeouts and walk, before senior Greg Larson (Longwood, Fla.) took over with one down in the eighth and recorded a pair of outs. Junior Austin Maddox (Jacksonville, Fla.) kept the Tigers off the board in the ninth to secure the win. Florida held a 10-3 advantage in hits in taking its opening-round contest for the second-straight year. The Orange and Blue now has four-straight double-digit hit performances.      

Florida Sweeps Halifax Media Group Southeastern Conference All-Sports Titles

The University of Florida swept the 2011-12 Halifax Media Group's Southeastern Conference All-Sports titles – the 12th time the Gator program has taken the three titles. The determination of the SEC All-Sports standings came after the conclusion of the regular-season baseball schedule, the final league sport to award a title in 2011-12.   The Gator athletics program took the overall, men’s and women’s SEC All-Sports titles. UF is the only school to collect all three titles in a single season.   The overall SEC All-Sports title is the 22nd for Florida, while the Gator program also earned its 19th women's and 16th men’s titles.   Did You Know… ·         Florida has claimed 205 Southeastern Conference team titles in its history, the most in the SEC. In the last 10 seasons, UF leads the league with 49 titles.   ·         Florida shared the SEC lead with three league titles in 2011-12. Arkansas, Kentucky and LSU also collected three SEC titles in 2011-12.   ·         Florida picked up six SEC Athlete of the Year honors in 2011-12 (baseball still to award their yearly honors).   ·         Florida has now won 22 Overall SEC All-Sports trophies   ·         Florida's first Overall SEC All-Sports title came in 1987-88.   ·         Florida is the only league program to collect all three titles (overall, men’s and women’s) in a single season. This year, Florida claimed SEC titles in gymnastics, women’s tennis and women’s indoor track & field. The Gators now own 49 titles since the 2002-03 academic year, the most by any conference school during the 10-year span. One other Florida sport claimed a league crown in 2012 as the Gator lacrosse team took the American Lacrosse Conference title for the second consecutive year.   "Claiming the SEC All-Sports title is something we take a lot of pride in. The level of competition in the Southeastern Conference is so challenging, as so many league teams are among the top contenders for national titles,” UF Athletics Director Jeremy Foley said. “To win the trophy is a credit to the efforts of our coaches and their athletes."   Florida finished this year with a total of 156.50 points in 16 sports to win its sixth consecutive overall all-sports title with an average of 9.78 points. Georgia was second with an average of 8.81 points.   The Florida women stayed on top for the sixth consecutive year with an average of 10.00 (90.0 total points in nine sports). Georgia was second with 82 points (9.11 average for nine sports).   In men’s competition, the Gators tallied 66.50 points for an average of 9.50 in its seven sports. The Georgia men's program was second with its seven sport average of 8.43.   The Halifax Media Group, which includes 14 newspapers throughout the Southeastern United States, awards the overall, men’s and women’s SEC All-Sport trophies. A first-place SEC finish is worth 12 points, second is given 11 points, and so on. The sports of cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field are combined. A program's outdoor track finish makes up half, while the remaining two quarters are based on the cross country and indoor finishes. A school's point total is divided by the number of sports it fields to arrive at the average.   This is the first year for the Halifax Media Group to award the SEC All-Sports Trophy. The New York Times Regional Newspaper Group gave the awards from the 1994-95 through 2010-11 seasons. Prior to that, the league tabulated the SEC All-Sports totals.    UF is hopeful of finishing among the nation's top 10 most successful overall athletic programs for the 29th consecutive year when final national all-sports rankings are released June 27. Florida is the only school to finish among the nation's top 10 overall most successful athletic programs each year since 1983.

Women's Tennis Defeats Duke, 4-3, to Play for NCAA Championship

Alexandra Cercone rallied for a three-set singles victory in the deciding match and Florida defeated third-seeded Duke, 4-3, on Monday to advance to the final match at the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships at the at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.     VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: http://www.gatorvision.tv/mediaPortal/player.dbml?id=878565&db_oem_id=6500     “I don’t know how we won that match,” said UF head coach Roland Thornqvist, who earned the 350th win of his career, as well as the 275th of his 11-year Gator tenure. “We found a way on doubles. I like the way we have played at the end of the doubles matches so far. Starting at the SEC Tournament and through this tournament, we’ve been very good at the end of doubles making the right decisions. Today was no difference. That was the difference. In retrospect, we needed it.”   The championship appearance is the Gator’s third straight and 13th in program history, winning team titles in 1992, 1996, 1998, 2003 and 2011. Second-seeded Florida (26-1) will play top-seeded UCLA (26-2) on Tuesday at 1 p.m. in the final.   The Bruins (26-2) upended conference rival and fifth-seeded Southern California, 4-3, in their semifinal victory. This is the first time in women’s tennis history that both semifinal matches went the distance.   Florida holds a slight 13-10 lead in the all-time series against UCLA, including a 7-5 edge in NCAA meetings. The teams most recently met in last year’s NCAA Semifinals, where the Gators took the deceiving 4-0 victory en route to winning their fifth national championship.   UF vs. UCLA in NCAA Championship Matches 1983: Round of 16 – UCLA 7, Florida 2 1988: Semifinals – Florida 5, UCLA 4 1989: Semifinals – UCLA 5, Florida 2 1990: Semifinals – Florida 5, UCLA 4 1991: Semifinals – UCLA 6, Florida 3 1992: Quarterfinals – Florida 5, UCLA 0 1994: Round of 16 – Florida 5, UCLA 2 1996: Semifinals – Florida 5, UCLA 1 2006: Round of 16 – Florida 4, UCLA 3 2007: Quarterfinals – UCLA 4, Florida 3 2008: Semifinals – UCLA 4, Florida 2 2011: Semifinals – Florida 4, UCLA 0 In Monday’s semifinal, Cercone trailed 2-0 in the third set but regrouped to win the next three games and held for a 4-2 lead. The Gator sophomore then held double break-point in the seventh game, but Mary Clayton battled back to hold and jumped out on Cercone’s serve by winning the first three points to set up triple break point. The Gator sophomore, who improved to 8-0 all-time in NCAA dual match singles play, fought off all three of those and another to take a 5-3 lead. She then capitalize on her first break point opportunity in the next game as Clayton’s ground stroke sailed long and set off a terrific Gator celebration once the 3 hour and 14 minute match ended.   “This is her sophomore year, and so far she has a clean sheet in this event,” Thornqvist said. “Alex had some ups and downs in her play, but somehow, when you come to this event, she is a different player. Today she got outplayed and found a way to win the second. I didn’t see the middle part of the third set, but she was just a surgeon at the end. She put the ball where she wanted it to be at the end.”   Florida took the hard-fought doubles point, with Allie Will (Boca Raton, Fla.) and Sofie Oyen (Leopoldsburg, Belgium) defeating Clayton and Ester Goldfeld, 8-3. Duke claimed the win on court three, setting the stage for court two, where the veteran pair of Lauren Embree (Marco Island, Fla.) and Joanna Mather (Duluth, Ga.) stepped up to earn the 9-8 (7-1) victory against Beatrice Capra and Rachel Kahan.   In that deciding doubles match, the Gators dropped their serve and Duke went to the baseline with an 8-7 lead. The Blue Devils couldn’t convert and the match entered a tiebreaker, where the two teams held serve on its first respective trips, before the Gators ripped off the next seven points to earn the victory. Embree and Mather, who had their 23-match win streak halted in Saturday’s quarterfinal match, improved to 49-2 all-time in dual match competition and 53-8 overall. Embree improved to 19-0 all-time in doubles-point clinching matches.   The Blue Devils (29-3) were undeterred after dropping the doubles point, having lost it three times in their previous five matches but won the dual match each time, and came out firing on the singles courts, winning the first set on five of the six courts.   “Duke is one heck of a team,” Thornqvist said. “The first hour in singles, they were beating us to death. I thought it got to us. I was really concerned that we were going to wear down. Somehow we found a way. Somehow we found a way to get one of (four and five). I was really proud of our players. We were really down and out, but found a way to get back in the match.”   Embree was the only Gator to take her opening set, but needed to regroup after falling behind 3-0, down two breaks. The Gator junior won four straight games to get the match back on-serve and earned another break for a 5-3 lead against Goldfeld, who broke back. Embree dug deep and broke Goldfeld for the fourth straight time to win the opening frame. The then won the first two games of the second, before Goldfeld earned a break That game, however, was the only one the Blue Devil would win, as Embree won the final four to earn the 6-4, 6-1 decision and post her 17th consecutive singles win and gave Florida a 2-0 lead.   Mather then rallied for a 2-6, 6-2, 6-0 victory on court three against Hanna Mar, winning the final eight games to record her 18th straight singles victory and help the Gators to a 3-0 lead. Serving at 40-30 and a 4-0 lead in the third set, Mather ran off the court after her first serve and got sick, but rushed right back and nailed her second serve to win the point and the game to take a 5-0 lead en route to the convincing third-set decision.   Florida was also able to force a third set on courts four, five and six, when court one – featuring the nation’s top two ranked players – had just completed its first set in one hour and 35 minutes, with Duke taking the set 6-4.   Court six was the third match to complete and Duke got on the scoreboard when Monica Turewicz defeated Olivia Janowicz (Palm Bay, Fla.), 6-1, 4-6, 6-3. The extremely tight battle on court one also came to end, with Duke’s second-ranked Capra downing top-ranked Will, 6-4, 6-4, in three hours and one minute and the Blue Devils inched closer, 3-2.   Oyen continued to fight on court four, where she lost her serve to drop the first set against Rachel Kahan, but was able to break in the ninth game of the second set and held to force a third set. The Gator sophomore then held to open the third, but Kahan won the next five games en route to taking the 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 decision and even the team scoring at 3-all, setting the stage for Cercone’s third set heroics.   Florida, which won its 21st consecutive match, improved to 13-9 all-time in the NCAA Semifinals action and holds a 5-7 record in NCAA Final matches.    

USF Bulls Use 1-0 Victory Over Florida Softball to Advance to NCAA Softball Super Regionals

USF used a Kenshyra Jackson infield single to plate the lone run of Sunday’s regional final between the USF and UF Sunshine State softball squads, as the Bulls advanced to the 16-team NCAA Super Regionals round with the 1-0 victory. The Gators loaded the bags in the bottom of the sixth, but couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity, wrapping up the 2012 season at 48-13 overall.

USF pitcher Sara Nevins tossed a complete-game, five-hit shutout, fanning 12 Florida batters to lead the Bulls to their second-ever Super Regionals appearance, as USF will host Hofstra, winner of the Los Angeles regional, this upcoming weekend.

Gator senior All-American and 2012 SEC Player of the Year Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.) concluded her tenure donning the Orange and Blue as Florida’s career leader in batting average (.385) and stolen bases/attempts (83-99). Moultrie, a top-10 finalist for the 2012 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award and USA Softball’s Player of the Year, dropped a staggering 73 bunt singles in her four-year career as a Gator, highlighted by 27 her senior season in 2012. Moultrie will continue her career internationally as a member of USA Softball’s 2012 Women’s National Team, with the option to play professionally after being drafted by the USSSA Florida Pride of the National Pro Fastpitch league.

While the Gators fell short of advancing out of a regional for the first time since 2006, Florida battled through adversity after falling into the loser’s bracket Friday, coming out with two dominating wins Saturday, including a season-best 14 hits against FGCU coupled with four home runs.

The Orange and Blue finished the 2012 SEC season 21-7 for the program’s fifth-straight 20-win league campaign in school history, as seven Gators were All-SEC picks. UF reached the SEC Tournament Championship Game for the fifth time in school history, as Florida head coach Tim Walton became the fastest active coach in the SEC to reach 500 career victories.

Junior Kelsey Horton (Valrico, Fla.) was named to the SEC Community Service team, while Horton and Moultrie were tabbed Capital One Academic All-District 4 honorees to advance to the national ballot for Academic All-American status. Sophomore ace Hannah Rogers (Lake Wales, Fla.), Moultrie, freshman Lauren Haeger (Peoria, Ariz.) and Horton are NFCA All-Southeast Region picks now in contention for All-America honors.

On the softball diamond, Florida claimed victories over top-10 national seeds Alabama, Texas and Texas A&M, as well as series wins at Georgia and Tennessee to highlight the 2012 regular-season slate.

Florida sophomore hurler Hannah Rogers (Lake Wales, Fla.), like Nevins, also went the distance Sunday, allowing just four USF hits, while Jackson beat out an infield single to allow the Bulls’ lone run to cross home in the top of the fourth. Rogers finished her second season on campus 28-8 overall, retiring four Bulls by strikeout Sunday.

Moultrie led Florida at the plate with a 2-for-4 performance, while Horton, Haeger and freshman Bailey Castro (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) were all 1-for-3 on the day. USF leadoff hitter Gina Kafalas (2-for-3) led the Bulls with half of the squad’s hits in the regional final.

The Gators will close the book to the 2012 season, but will look forward to welcoming a class of five signees in the fall of 2012 in Taylore Fuller, Kirsti Merritt, Aubree Munro, Taylor Schwarz and Kelsey Stewart.

No. 5 Seed UF Softball Uses Six Homers, 20 Hits, in Two Elimination Games Saturday to Stay Alive in NCAA Tourney

A resilient Gator softball squad battled through two elimination games Saturday on the second day of the 2012 NCAA Softball Gainesville Regional, downing UCF, 7-1, and FGCU, 6-2, to stay alive in the NCAA tournament. The Orange and Blue racked up six home runs and 20 hits on the day – including14 to tie a season high against the Eagles – to advance to Sunday’s contests vs. the USF Bulls.

Florida and USF will first take to the field at 1 p.m. The Gators will need two wins Sunday to be one of 16 teams in the country to advance to Super Regionals. Should UF take game one from USF, the ‘if necessary’ contest is slated for 3:30 p.m. from Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. One win Sunday for the Bulls would punch a ticket to Super Regionals for the team from Tampa.

Junior Kelsey Horton (Valrico, Fla.), senior Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.) and freshman Lauren Haeger (Peoria, Ariz.) led UF at the plate Saturday, Horton with a perfect 4-for-4 performance, including two bombs against the Eagles in the nightcap. Moultrie, who was 4-for-4 versus FGCU, finished the day 5-for-7 (.714) with five-consecutive hits carried over from game one to her perfect performance in game two. Haeger dropped a team-best three bombs, including two against UCF, for four RBI and three runs scored to help lead UF’s efforts.

Junior third baseman Sam Holle (Tampa, Fla.) knocked her first dinger of the season in the nightcap to contribute to Florida’s season-best four overall against the Eagles. For Holle, the homer was the fifth of her career.

Florida ended both the UCF (39-19) and FGCU (38-24) postseason runs to improve to 48-12 overall on the year and 23-17 all-time in NCAA Regional action.

The Gators jumped out to a 2-0 lead over UCF early, thanks to a two-run Haeger bomb, her first of the day, and followed to scatter runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to rout the Knights, 7-1, behind Haeger’s 2-for-3, two homer show. Sophomore hurler Hannah Rogers (Lake Wales, Fla.) picked up the win in the circle for the Orange and Blue to improve to 28-7 overall on the year, working five shutout innings, allowing just four hits and one walk, while fanning five.

Haeger came on in relief for the final 2.0, allowing UCF’s lone run on a Hayley Barrow one-run single to left field. The righty earned the start in game two to pick up her 15th win of the season (15-5), while Rogers earned her fourth save of 2012 with two innings of one-hit, shutout relief. Haeger fanned one and allowed five hits and two Eagle runs through the first five innings before Rogers got the call in to close out the final two stanzas.

In a more tightly contested match-up against FGCU, four Gators had two or more hits on the night, led by Moultries 4-for-4, Horton’s 3-for-4, while Haeger and freshman Bailey Castro (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) were both 2-for-4. Freshmen Jess Damico (Gray Summit, Mo.) and Katie Medina (Downey, Calif.) added hits to the show, while Holle contributed her long ball to lead off the fourth.

The Eagles battled, though, plating a run in the fifth on a Jessica Barnes sac fly and a leadoff homer from Emily Lanier – her second of the weekend against UF – in the sixth to start a rally. With the UF advantage narrowed to 3-2 in the sixth, the Gators exchanged Haeger for Rogers, who teamed up with Horton for a caught stealing, then forced a groundout and fly out to retire the side.

Florida backed up its hurlers in the seventh, tacking on three runs on three hits, thanks to Horton’s two-run blast back-to-back with Haeger’s third long ball of the day to provide cushion heading to the seventh, where Rogers finished out her work for UF’s second victory of the day.

Women's Tennis Rides Doubles Momentum into NCAA Semifinals after 4-0 Win vs. Miami

Second-seeded Florida advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships after outlasting Miami on the doubles court and then carrying that momentum onto the singles courts where the Gators earned a 4-0 victory and their third consecutive trip to the final four on Saturday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

After the teams split the doubles results on courts one and two, Alexandra Cercone (Seminole, Fla.) and Caroline Hitimana (Waterloo, Belgium) clinched the doubles point with an 8-6 victory that lasted one hour and 46 minutes.

Cercone and Hitimana were up a break at 4-1 before Anna Bartenstein and Brittany Dubins were able to get the match back on-serve with the break in the seventh game and held for 4-all. Cercone then held at love and it stayed that way through the 13th game, which proved to be a pivotal one for the Gators, who took turned away five break points and capitalized on their second game-point in the 18-point game for a 7-6 lead. Bartenstein then held a game-point on her serve, but the UF pair fought that off, as well as another and captured the doubles point on their third match point.

Florida (25-1) fed off the momentum and needed just one hour and 39 minutes to get singles wins from Cercone, Olivia Janowicz (Palm Bay, Fla.) and Joanna Mather (Duluth, Ga.) to advance to the NCAA Semifinals for the 22nd time in the last 26 years and produce the 900th win in program history.

"I think winning the doubles point was huge,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “I think it really quieted down the Miami players. I thought we were the better team on all six singles courts, so I wasn't terribly afraid that losing the doubles point would let the match slip out of our hands. However, it makes a big difference when we can come through with great courage like we did at three doubles to win it. I certainly felt like that set the tone in the beginning of singles."

"We were up 4-1 and then it went to 4-4, and I think at that point the other matches were close to being finished and it was not even close on our court,” Cercone shared. “I knew we had a long ways to go, so at that point Caroline (Hitimana) and I were focused on trying to win every game that we could, trying to do the right thing and really play the opponents weaknesses and our strengths. It got really tight, there were some close calls, and we tried to not let that bother us. Once we got through that, we got really hyped, we were able to close it out and it was very relieving."

Gators Advance to NCAA Championship After Second Place Finish at NCAA East Regional

The University of Florida men’s golf team used a final round 285 (-3) to finish as the runner-up at the 2012 NCAA East Regional at the Grandover Resort East Course. With the top-5 finish, the Gators have advanced to the NCAA Championship, played this year at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif., for an NCAA best 12th consecutive season.  

“It was another solid day that was badly needed because the rest of the field played so well,” said head coach Buddy Alexander. “The quality of play today from the majority of the field was impressive and I thought we were able to play a good, solid round of golf. I’m proud of my guys for bouncing back after the poor first round and I’m looking forward to going to California for Nationals.”

For the day, the Gators were led by junior T.J. Vogel (Cooper City, Fla.) who shot an impressive three-under, 69, and three golfers; freshmen J.D. Tomlinson (Gainesville, Fla.) and Eric Banks (Truro, Canada)  and senior Michael Furci (Sayville, N.Y.); who shot rounds of even par, 72.  

Vogel played the front nine in one-under, 35, after birdies on the par-5 sixth and the par-4 ninth countered by a bogey on the fifth. After a bogey on 10 to fall back to even par for the tournament, Vogel caught fire down the stretch finishing his round by making three birdies on his final five holes to post his 69 and finish the tournament in 217 (+1), good for a tie for seventh place overall, his ninth top-10 finish of the season.

“T.J. was amazing today. To bounce back from a 78 on the first day and finish in the top-10 shows how special of a player he is,” Alexander explained.

Tomlinson led the Gators for the tournament finishing in a tie for fifth overall, the best finish of his young career. On the day, Tomlinson made four birdies against four bogeys to finish his tournament at even par, 216.

Banks got off to a quick start making birdies on the par-5 second and the par-4 fourth. After dropping a shot on the fifth, Banks closed his front nine with four pars to turn in one-under, 35. On the back nine, Banks saw two birdies, countered by three bogeys to come in with 37 to post an even par round. For the tournament, Banks finished in a tie for 16th with a 221 (+5).

“Our freshmen both had solid days for us,” Alexander said. “J.D. just keeps getting better and better and Eric has really grown up and is playing some good golf.”

After a difficult first two rounds, Furci was able to bounce back with a solid closing round to round out the scoring on the day for the Orange and Blue. The senior used four birdies and an eagle to counter six bogeys to post his 72 (E).

Despite a final round 74, junior Tyler McCumber (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) finished 15th overall at 220 (+4), his ninth top-20 finish on the year. 

Auburn Holds Off No. 3 UF Baseball, 5-4, To Salvage Series Finale

Auburn senior right fielder Creede Simpson threw out Florida senior Preston Tucker (Tampa, Fla.) at the plate to compete a game-ending double play as the Tigers (30-26/13-17 SEC) notched a 5-4 victory on Saturday afternoon at Plainsman Park.

AU’s win prevented the third-ranked Gators (40-16/18-12 SEC) from earning a share of the Southeastern Conference title with LSU (42-14/19-11 SEC), which edged South Carolina (39-15/18-11 SEC) this afternoon in Columbia, 3-2, in 10 innings. The seeding and bracket for the 2012 SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala., that starts on Tuesday will be announced later this evening after today’s action has been completed.

With the Gators down to their final three outs, Tucker (2-for-5) delivered a base-hit into right field off of senior Justin Bryant with one down. Junior Mike Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) followed with a double that grazed the wall in left field, his school-record 24th of the campaign. With a pair of runners in scoring position, junior Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach, Fla.) lofted what Florida hoped would be a game-tying sacrifice fly into right field. However, Simpson snared the ball for the second out and fired a bullet to the plate, where senior Caleb Bowen applied the tag to a sliding Tucker to end the contest. Bryant collected his sixth save and nailed down the win for senior Derek Varnadore (4-7).

Auburn had rallied for three runs on four hits to seize a 5-4 lead in the seventh, moving in front on a two-run, two-out infield single by Bryant. Sophomore Zach Alvord (2-for-4) punched a leadoff single up the middle, junior Mitchell Self singled through the left side and freshman Tanner Cimo sliced a single into left field to load the bases with none out for the hosts. A fielder’s choice by Simpson brought home Alvord for a 4-3 score and junior Steven Rodriguez (Miami, Fla.) (3-2) fanned sophomore Ryan Tella for the second out. Junior Austin Maddox (Jacksonville, Fla.) replaced Rodriguez (1.0 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 K) and Simpson moved into scoring position with his 24th theft. Bryant singled on a 3-2 pitch just beyond second base, bringing home both Self and Simpson. The Tigers had trailed by scores of 3-0 in the second and 4-2 entering the seventh.

Sophomore Jay Gonzalez had opened the home part of the first with a single up the middle off of sophomore Karsten Whitson (Chipley, Fla.) and moved into scoring position with his team-leading 28th stolen base. Whitson had Simpson pop up a bunt attempt and struck out Tella. Bryant’s bid for a base-hit into left field was dashed when junior shortstop Nolan Fontana (Winter Garden, Fla.) made a tremendous diving stop and a perfect throw to first base that retired the side.

The Gators erupted for three runs on five hits in the second inning against Varnadore to take a 3-0 lead. Johnson started the frame with a single into left center and senior Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) (2-for-3) followed with a double down the right-field line. Freshman Casey Turgeon (Palm Harbor, Fla.) cleared the bases with his team-leading third triple into right field. Freshman Justin Shafer (Lake Wales, Fla.) drew a walk for runners on the corners and Turgeon came across with the third run when junior Vickash Ramjit (Miami, Fla.) grounded into a 4-6-3 double play. Freshman Josh Tobias (Greensboro, N.C.) (2-for-4) and Fontana had back-to-back two-out singles before Varnadore escaped further trouble by having Tucker go down on strikes.

The Tigers answered in the bottom of the inning with a two-out RBI double by Alvord to narrow the gap to 3-1. Junior Patrick Savage had led off with a double to straightaway center field and advanced to third on a grounder by Bowen. Whitson had sophomore Bobby Andrews pop up to Fontana and Alvord put Auburn on the board with a two-bagger into the right-field corner.

Auburn pulled to within 3-2 in the third on a two-out error by Fontana, his first in SEC play and first since March 27. Cimo started things off with a walk and Tella earned a one-out free pass before Whitson had Bryant fly out to right field. A grounder by Savage was misplayed, allowing Cimo to score. Whitson had Bowen line out to keep the Gators in front.

Tucker came through with a two-out RBI single in the fourth to give Florida a 4-2 advantage. Shafer reached on a leadoff error by Self at shortstop and went to third on a one-out single by Tobias on a perfectly executed hit-and-run. A fielder’s choice by Fontana erased Shafer at the plate but then Tucker roped 1-2 offering from Varnadore into right field to plate Tobias.

After Whitson worked five innings, allowing three hits and two runs (one earned), with two walks and two strikeouts, senior Greg Larson (Longwood, Fla.) took the mound in the sixth. The right-hander retired the first two batters before permitting a single into right field to Bowen. Rodriguez was summoned from the bullpen and struck out Andrews to preserve the two-run margin for the time being.

After Auburn seized the 5-4 lead, Pigott drew a leadoff walk from Bryant, who had taken over for Varnadore (7.0 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 3 ER) prior to the eighth. Turgeon pushed Pigott to second with a grounder and Self misplayed Ramjit’s two-out grounder for an error, leaving runners on the corners. Bryant had Tobias ground out to complete the inning.

Florida held a 12-9 advantage in hits but Auburn turned four double plays this afternoon. The trio of Fontana, Pigott and Tucker had two hits apiece to lead the Gators, while Alvord was 2-for-4 to lead the Tigers.

Stony Brook Bound: Gators Defeat Penn State, 15-2, to Advance to First NCAA Semifinals

The University of Florida lacrosse team made history once again this afternoon, defeating Penn State, 15-2, in the NCAA Quarterfinals to become the youngest program ever to earn two tournament wins and advance to the National Semifinals. With the win, the Gators improve to 19-2 on the season, and will face fourth-seeded Syracuse (18-3) on Friday night in Stony Brook, N.Y., in the NCAA Semifinals. Penn State, who came in looking for its first semifinals appearance since 1999, ends the year at 12-7.

“I’m really proud of our program, the players, the coaches, the support staff,” said Head Coach Amanda O’Leary. “This was a monumental win for us. We’ve been preparing for this since we lost to Duke in this same round last year. These young ladies have put in so much hard work. They have the heart, they have the passion and I thought it really showed today.

“This was 60 minutes of great lacrosse for Florida. I thought our players across the board defensively, in the goal cage, through the midfield, in the attacking end, absolutely I thought this was one of our best efforts.”

Tewaaraton Award finalist Brittany Dashiell (Bel Air, Md.) led the Gators’ balanced offense with three goals and two assists on the day. Nora Barry (Marcellus, N.Y.) also notched three goals, and Ashley Bruns (Ellicott City, Md.), Shannon Gilroy (Northport, N.Y.) and Kitty Cullen (Rockville, Md.) each put up two goals and an assist. Additionally, freshman Taylor McCord (Jacksonville, Fla.) scored the final goal of the game in her first career postseason appearance.

Shannon Gilroy dominated on the draw once again, leading the Gators with six draw controls and helping the team to a 15-4 team advantage on draws. With Gilroy in the circle, the Gators have had a 43-11 edge on draw controls over the past three games.

“When the ball is up in the air, we’re pretty confident (Shannon)’s going to come up with it,” O’Leary said. “When it’s on the wings we have Kayla (Stolins) and Brittany (Dashiell). We have solid group of attackers on the back line and a solid group of defenders who can also compete for those ground balls. Again, draw controls are just so critical because whoever possesses the ball has the opportunity to score.

“I think Shannon’s a huge part of that, but I also think that we are maturing through that competitiveness that if there’s a ground ball or if the ball is in the air, I see these guys with a hunger of want to get that ground ball and wanting to get that ball in the air, and I think that’s one of the biggest improvements to our game.”

Nora Barry was strong in the midfield, earning three draw controls and three ground balls, and Haydon Judge (Chestertown, Md.) and Ashley Bruns each caused a pair of turnovers.

Mikey Meagher (Liverpool, N.Y.) stopped seven shots and allowed just two goals as the Gators held PSU to just nine shots on goal in the game. ALC Goalie of the Year Dana Cahill made 13 stellar saves in the cage for Penn State, but UF’s potent offense put up 34 shots on the day, as Cahill retires with a 22-15 career record.

“I credit Penn State with their fantastic game plan,” O’Leary said. “They came in here, worked hard, they were gritty, they were scrappy. Offensively, they kept us on our heels; defensively, I thought Dana Cahill did a fantastic job in the goal cage so I just want to credit them with a game very well played.

Haley Ford and Lizzy Carney scored the Nittany Lions’ two goals and Mackenzie Cyr notched their sole assist. Freshman Tatum Coffee challenged in the midfield, earning two ground balls, a draw control and a caused turnover.

Shannon Gilroy got the ball rolling just over two minutes in, beating out a one-on-one drive and putting the ball into the top left corner of the net. Less than a minute later, Gilroy was fouled at the top of the fan, and laced in goal number two to give Florida a quick, 2-0 lead.

Haley Ford netted a crossing shot for the Nittany Lions at 22:46, but Florida followed with a 5-0 run featuring a pair of goals each from Dashiell and Bruns to power ahead, 7-1.

“It’s definitely a huge boost and a huge spark,” said Cullen on making a big run. “Mikey will make a save at one end and it will get us more pumped up and want to score and keep scoring; and once you score once and get the ball again, you just want to keep going and keep going, because then we’re going to get up by even more.”

Mackenzie Cyr set up Lizzy Carney from the point at 6:03 to get one back for Penn State, but Cullen put one up with 23 seconds remaining in the half to enter the break holding a solid, 8-2 lead.

The Gators defense was lights out in the second half, keeping the Nittany Lions off the board for the final 36 minutes of play, marking just the fifth time in NCAA Tournament history that a team has been held scoreless in the second half.

“The defense is incredible,” said goalkeeper Mikey Meagher, “Every game they just get better. To have those seven in front of me, I love them. You can’t ask for anything more of them, because they just go out with such heart and hustle every single game and no matter what they do, I know they have my back and I have theirs.”

UF’s attackers found the back of the net seven times in the second half, with the final four goals of the game coming from Gator rookies Nora Barry, Nicole Graziano (Mendham, N.J.) and Taylor McCord, to earn a final score of 15-2.

 “I think it’s exciting and it’s wonderful,” O’Leary said of the team’s accomplishment, “but I think its more of a testament to the University of Florida, Jeremy Foley, to these young ladies, to our coaching staff, to our support staff, because it’s a whole group of individuals. Its just not one person that decides that we’re going to make it to the Final Four, it starts at the top and it goes all the way down and I think these guys have bought into our system.”

The Gators will hit the road for Stony Brook, N.Y., this week to face fourth-seeded Syracuse University (18-3) in the NCAA Semifinals on Friday, May 25. The Orange defeated fifth-seeded North Carolina this afternoon in a nail-biting 17-16 contest, as Tewaaraton finalist Michelle Tumolo put up the game-winner with just five seconds remaining in regulation.

The University of Maryland was the first team to advance this afternoon, defeating Loyola, 17-11, and will face the winner of tonight’s quarterfinal matchup between Northwestern and Duke in the other semifinal game. The first semifinal will begin at 5:30 p.m. with the second game beginning at approximately 8 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN3.

“We’re so blessed here,” said O’Leary. “We have tremendous fans who come out each and every game so it’s a tremendous accomplishment and one that I’m incredibly, incredibly proud of. But we have some more work today and I hope that I can stand up here in a little while and say this wasn’t the most proud moment. We still have a couple more.”