The No. 3 Florida softball team opened the
series at Ole Miss with a 4-1 victory Friday night at the Ole Miss Softball
Complex, as junior Stephanie Tofft (Lincoln, Calif.) and sophomore Jessica
Damico (Gray Summit, Mo.) each drove in two runs, while freshman Taylore
Fuller (Trenton, Fla.) was 2-for-3 at the plate for the Gators.
Florida (33-3, 8-2 SEC) made it eight
straight wins over Ole Miss (19-19, 1-9 SEC) Friday with its 37th all-time
victory over the Rebels, 16th in Oxford, to open the three-game conference set.
The Gators put up seven hits in the contest,
Tofft and Fuller with two each.
Junior ace Hannah Rogers (Lake Wales,
Fla.) led the way in the circle for the Orange and Blue with her 13th complete
game of the season. Rogers fanned five, gave up one run and two hits to improve
to 19-2 overall on the year. Carly Hummel (8-11) shouldered the loss for the
Rebels after giving up UF’s seven hits and four earned runs, also going the
distance. Hummel finished the evening with six Ks and dished out one free pass.
The Gators were off to a quick start in the
top of the first, as freshman Kelsey Stewart (Wichita, Kan.) dropped a
leadoff bunt single, then swiped her 26th stolen base of the season to set up a
Tofft RBI double to deep center for the early 1-0 lead. For Tofft, the two-bagger
was her team-leading 11th of the year.
Rogers went to work in the circle in the home
half of the stanza, retiring the Rebels using an efficient six pitches for
three up, three down to bring up the second.
With two down in the top of the second and
senior Kelsey Horton (Valrico, Fla.) on first after the team’s 45th
hit-by-pitch of the season, Damico went yard with her fifth long ball of the
season – a two-run shot – to extend the Gator advantage, 3-0.
On defense, Rogers faced just 10 Ole Miss
batters through the first three innings and fourteen through four, walking one
in the second and giving up Ole Miss’ first hit of the game in the bottom of
the fourth, while retiring the remaining 12. The Rebels drew their second walk
of the contest in the bottom of the fifth, while the Gators’ righty faced just
four in the stanza.
The Rebels made a push in the bottom of the
sixth with runners on first and second after a RT Cantillo walk and Brittany
Broome bunt single, while Cantillo and Broome moved to second and third with
one down after a sacrifice bunt. Londen Ladner then connected for a sac fly to
center to narrow the Gators’ margin, 3-1, heading to the seventh.
Florida added one run for insurance in the
top of the seventh after a leadoff single through the left side for Fuller followed
by a Damico sac bunt to move Fuller into scoring position at second. With two
down in the top of the final frame, Tofft knocked her second RBI base hit of the
contest, sending a single to center to plate Fuller for the 4-1 Gator lead
heading to the home half of the seventh.
Rogers retired Natalie Nimmo, pinch hitter Lauren
Lindsey and Marina Parra in order in the bottom of the seventh to solidify UF’s
eighth conference win of the season.
