The No. 6 Florida Gators baseball team will open up a three-game home series against Siena College on Friday night. The Gators are coming off of a 2-0 series win over FAU in which they raked in 29 total runs over both games, including an 11-0 shutout in game two.
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FAU
Josh Rivera opened game one with a first-inning three-run shot that would ignite Florida’s bats for the rest of the series. Rivera’s stellar play would continue throughout the night as he raked in 9 total RBIs. The junior finished his career night 3-4 with two home runs. His 9 runs driven in were a career high and the most by a Gator since JJ Schwarz brought in 10 against Stetson in 2015.
Florida Atlantic showed that they can hit, bringing in 11 runs off 14 hits. But Florida’s four home runs were too much for the Owls. Despite the Gators’ poor pitching in certain circumstances, they were able to win 18-11 after a five-run eighth inning.
Game two wasn’t much different for the Gators offensively. After going up 7-0, Jac Caglianone took an 0-1 pitch yard for a walk-off grand slam. Florida’s pitching, however, was much improved. Tyler Nesbitt and Philip Abner combined for an eight-inning shutout of the Owls.
Siena College
The Saints enter Gainesville 2-10 on the season off of a 2-1 series win over Miami (OH). Siena assistant coach Joe Sheridan spoke with Steve Russell ahead of Friday’s matchup. Sheridan will fill the role of head coach Tony Rossi after his 54 years in charge of the program.
When asked about what to expect from his team, Sheridan pointed to his team’s youth and will to compete.
Siena’s opening schedule has seen them play Jacksonville, UCF, Stetson and now Florida. Sheridan said that it’s no secret they want to give the team tough games to prepare for the post-season.
“Just talent one through nine.”
Joe Sheridan had nothing but compliments for Florida’s impressive roster. He says their talent alone makes them one of the top teams in the country.
The Gators baseball team will take on Siena at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network.
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