Florida
(9-10/1-0 SEC) snapped a 1-1 tie with a three-run seventh to notch a 4-1
victory over No. 10 Kentucky (14-3/0-1 SEC) in the teams’ Southeastern
Conference opener on Friday night at McKethan Stadium. In what was a pitching
duel between Gator freshman right-hander Jay Carmichael (Cape Coral,
Fla.) and Wildcat sophomore left-hander A.J. Reed, UF scored three unearned
runs in the seventh to claim its league debut for the fourth-straight year and
the fifth time in head coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s six years at the helm.
Sophomore Ryan Harris (Jupiter, Fla.) (3-1) threw two scoreless innings
to pick up the win, while sophomore Johnny Magliozzi (East
Milton, Mass.) kept UK off the board in the ninth to register his fourth save.
“It’s
one thing to get your first start, but then you get your first start against a
ranked opponent for the first SEC game of the year,” said O’Sullivan. “I
thought he [Jay Carmichael] did a really nice job. He pitched into the sixth
inning and kind of got himself in trouble when he hit a guy and walked a couple
of guys, but other than that, he commanded the ball, pitched with all three of
his pitches and did a really nice job. I thought our bullpen came in and did a
terrific job: [Bobby] Poyner, [Ryan] Harris and Mags [Johnny Magliozzi] did
exactly what they needed to do.”
“I
think the great thing about our offense tonight was Josh Tobias having a
2-for-2 night, hitting a home run the other way and staying on the ball. I saw
some emotion from him when he was coming around first base and I was awfully pleased
and happy for him there. We obviously manufactured some runs in the seventh inning,
but it was a great team effort. The pitching was outstanding all night long; any
time you hold a team like Kentucky to four hits and one run over nine innings,
you’ve got to feel good about that, pitching-wise. The bottom of our order did
well – Connor Mitchell had a hit and Tobias had two – so, three of our six hits
were from the eight and nine spots. The middle of our order needs to get going
a little bit more, but it was just one of those games where it came down to a
pitch here or an at-bat there. We played a complete game.”
Sophomore
Austin Cousino (2-for-3) led off the game with a base-hit into left field and Carmichael
had junior J.T. Riddle ground into a 4-6-3 double play and sophomore Max Kuhn
ground out.
Sophomore
Josh Tobias (Greensboro, N.C.) (2-for-2) provided the Gators with a 1-0
lead with his first career homer with two down in the third inning. Reed (2-2)
had retired the first eight UF hitters of the contest before Tobias sent the
left-hander’s first offering over the right-field fence.
“I
was looking for a good pitch to drive,” Tobias acknowledged. “I just put a good
swing on it. It was good to get ahead early and put the pressure on them.”
The
Wildcats loaded the bases in the fourth inning, as Riddle was hit by a pitch, Kuhn
followed with a walk with one down and junior Paul McConkey earned a two-out
walk. Carmichael had redshirt junior Micheal Thomas pop up to sophomore Casey
Turgeon (Palm Harbor, Fla.) at shortstop to strand the runners.
The
Gators mounted a two-out rally in the fifth, thanks to a walk by sophomore Connor
Mitchell (Tampa, Fla.) and an infield single by Tobias. Reed kept the score
at 1-0 by having Turgeon fly out to right field.
Reed
(2-for-4) helped his own cause with a game-tying RBI double in the sixth. Cousino
had opened the inning with a single into left field and Carmichael had Riddle
pop up to redshirt sophomore Zack Powers (Seffner, Fla.) for the first
out. Cousino moved into scoring position with his team-leading sixth stolen
base and Carmichael struck out Kuhn. However, Reed sent a 3-2 pitch to
straightaway center field to bring home Cousino on his third two-bagger of the
year. After matching his career-high of 5.2 innings, in which he yielded three
hits and totaled two strikeouts, Carmichael was replaced by sophomore Bobby
Poyner (Wellington, Fla.). The southpaw had McConkey ground out to preserve
the stalemate.
"It
was something else,” said Carmichael about making his first collegiate start. “It
was a great experience. Having these guys behind me really helps, they're very
supportive. We needed that [win] badly; and we’re going to run with this and
keep fighting.”
In
the home part of the frame, freshman Harrison Bader (Bronxville, N.Y.)
led off with his second triple of the season. Reed left him there by having
sophomore Justin Shafer (Lake Wales, Fla.) pop up to first base and then
struck out senior Vickash Ramjit (Miami, Fla.) and sophomore Taylor
Gushue (Boca Raton, Fla.).
After
Harris worked a 1-2-3 seventh, the Gators capitalized on three Kentucky errors
and plated three runs on two hits to build a 4-1 advantage. A throwing error by
McConkey at third base enabled Powers to occupy second base to start the frame.
Freshman Brady Roberson (Royal Palm Beach, Fla.) then laid down a bunt
that McConkey mishandled for runners on the corners with none out. Mitchell
beat out an infield single to score Powers with the go-ahead run and moved
freshman pinch runner Christian Dicks (Jacksonville, Fla.) to second
base. Tobias sacrificed his teammates into scoring position with a bunt and
Turgeon delivered an RBI single into right field to plate Dicks for a 3-1
advantage. Reed uncorked a wild pitch that pushed Turgeon to second and a
fielder’s choice by Bader resulted in Mitchell being safe at the plate when he
beat the throw from junior shortstop Matt Reida. Senior Walter Wijas came in
for Reed (6.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 1 ER) and had Shafer fly out to center field before
McConkey’s third error of the inning loaded the bases with two down. Wijas
jammed Gushue on a pop-up into foul territory to hold the Wildcats’ deficit at
three runs.
Magliozzi
replaced Harris (2.0 IP, 0 H) prior to the ninth and Reed led off with a single
and redshirt sophomore Thomas Bernal followed by being hit by a pitch. The
right-hander responded by having the next three hitters, sophomore pinch hitter
Jeff Boehm, senior Zac Zellers and Reida, fly out to center field to complete
the contest. Florida held a 6-4 advantage in hits.
