Gators Keep NCAA Baseball Hopes Alive With Win Over Georgia

Cade Kurland slugs 2-run homer in the 8th inning vs. Georgia (UAA Photo)

Florida’s hopes to make the NCAA field of 64 teams were teetering on the verge of extinction in the eighth inning Friday afternoon in Athens. With Jac Caglianone, who had led off the inning with a single to right field, standing on second and an 0-2 count to Cade Kurland, it was a dire straits situation for the Gators.

Kurland, who was 0-3 for the day, worked the count to 3-2 while fouling off a potential third strike off Georgia (39-13, 17-12 SEC) reliever Brian Zeldin. On the seventh pitch of the at-bat, Zeldin gave Kurland a pitch he could handle and the UF second baseman launched the ball over the left field wall to tie the score at 4-4.

Two innings later after Brandon Neely set down six Bulldogs in a row, Ashton Wilson and Caglianone led off the top of the 10th with back-to-back singles. After a sacrifice bunt by Colby Shelton moved the runners up a base, Luke Heyman hit his third home run of the series to left field to give the Gators a most unexpected 7-4 lead that hushed the crowd of 3,483 at Foley Field.

Neely gave up a harmless single in the bottom half to not only preserve the 7-4 win but keep the Gators in the hunt to make the NCAA field for the 17th consecutive year. At 27-26 (12-17 SEC) the Gators are definitely a bubble team, but if they can escape Athens with a win today (2 p.m., SEC Network+) and pull off a first round win at the SEC Tournament in Hoover next week, there is a very good chance Florida will keep the streak alive.

The home runs by Kurland and Heyman were definitely clutch, but so was the performance by Neely, who came on in the sixth with one out, the bases loaded and the Gators trailing, 3-1. After a 3-0 count to Logan Jordan, Neely came back with three straight strikes, the third one looking for the second out. He started Kolby Branch out 2-0, but responded with another strikeout for a great escape.

Florida cut the lead to 3-2 in the seventh on a single by Tyler Shelnut, a fielder’s choice by Dale Thomas and a double by Michael Robertson, but Georgia responded with Corey Collins’ second home run of the game to lead off the bottom half for a 4-2 lead. That was the last damage Georgia did to Neely, who set down the next nine hitters before Charlie Condon led off the bottom of the 10th with a single.

It was quite a reversal of fortune for Neely, who was the losing pitcher in games one and three of Florida’s weekend series against Kentucky. In 4-1/3 innings against Kentucky, Neely gave up seven hits and seven runs while struggling with his control.

Against Georgia Saturday, Neely went 4-2/3 innings, gave up two hits and one run. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out six to earn his second win of the year.

For Caglianone, who had his 30-game hitting streak ended Thursday night, it was a 3-4 afternoon as he raised his batting average to .419. It was Caglianone’s third inning double that scored Robertson with the game’s first run.

The Gators got a quality start out of freshman Liam Peterson, who pitched four shutout innings before the Bulldogs got to him for two runs in the fifth on a 2-run homer by Collins. In the sixth, Peterson gave up a leadoff double and an RBI single before he was replaced by Luke McNeillie. When McNeillie loaded the bases with a walk and a hit batter, Kevin O’Sullivan called in Neely from the bullpen to wiggle out of the jam.

Gator notes: If the Gators can get out of Athens winning two of three, their NCAA chances will be seriously enhanced. Currently, UF has the No. 25 RPI … The win was Florida’s 14th come-from-behind victory this season … The home run by Heyman was his fifth in the last four games, raising his total this season to 13, a career high … Kurland’s homer was his 11th of the season … Caglianone (5-1, 4.07 ERA) will get the start today.

SEC Friday scores

FLORIDA (27-26, 12-17 SEC) 7, No. 9 Georgia (39-13, 17-12 SEC) 4

No. 1 Tennessee (45-10, 21-8 SEC) 8, No. 24 South Carolina (33-20, 13-16 SEC) 3

No. 2 Kentucky (39-11, 22-7 SEC) 17, Vanderbilt (34-20, 12-17 SEC) 7

No. 3 Arkansas (43-11, 20-9 SEC) 6, No. 5 Texas A&M (43-11, 18-11 SEC) 3

No. 16 Mississippi State (36-18, 17-12 SEC) 8, Missouri (22-32, 8-21 SEC) 2

LSU (35-20, 12-17 SEC) 4, Ole Miss (27-27, 11-18 SEC) 2

Auburn (27-25, 8-21 SEC) 12, Alabama (32-21, 12-17 SEC) 11