Florida infielder Kenleigh Cahalan celebrates after reaching second base against the North Florida Ospreys on Feb. 6 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. [Matthew Lewis/WRUF]

Gators Softball Continues Dominance Against Stetson

Hannah Getman February 13, 2025 College Softball, Gators Softball, Gators Sports, Softball 51 Views

The Florida Gators softball team kept its win streak alive Wednesday night, defeating in-state opponent Stetson University, 11-0, at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.

The Gators (8-0) have six run-rule wins just eight games into the 2025 season following Tuesday and Wednesday’s wins.

Scoring Early And Often

The Gators came out swinging by scoring five runs in the first. After a three up, three down inning for sophomore pitcher Keagan Rothrock, Florida wasted no time getting going. Senior Kendra Falby ran out a grounder to the shortstop and stole the next two bases. Stetson walked senior Korbe Otis, who preceded to steal second. On the throw down, Falby drew first blood by capitalizing on her opportunity to steal home. With Otis still on base, junior catcher Jocelyn Erickson blasted a no-doubter out of the park to make it 3-0.

Two batter laters, junior transfer Kenleigh Cahalan hit her first home run as a Gator with one runner on to put Florida up 5-0. When asked about the hit, she talked about how she could not have done it without her teammates and coaches:

Stetson kept the Gators quiet until the third. Erickson led off the inning by legging out a triple to get into scoring position. Senior Reagan Walsh brought her home in the next at bat on a sacrifice fly to left field. The Hatters forced two outs after Walsh to escape the inning with just one run scored.

Getting Back Into Groove

Much like the first, Rothrock went three up, three down to start the fourth inning. And, again just like the first, Florida’s bats did not disappoint. Mia Williams started off the inning by blasting a homer to the soccer field behind the left field fence and increasing the lead to seven.

The Hatters then opted for a pitching change, but to no avail. Freshman Kennedy Temples entered the game for Stetson but struggled, walking four batters. Temples gave up four runs before she was able to escape the inning on a fly out to left field.

Rothrock gave up one hit in the fifth, but managed to keep Stetson (5-1) quiet to secure the run-rule win. The Gators improved to 21-2 all-time against the Hatters.

Dominating In Circle

Rothrock picked up her fourth win of the new season in this one. She struck out seven Hatters, allowed just two hits and no walks in her five innings pitched. Rothrock keeps her ERA at zero for the year with the shutout. Florida’s offense fed off her energy, coming up big when she gave them quick innings defensively.

Takeaways

It’s clear Florida is a power-hitting team. If a pitcher leaves a ball over the plate, the Gators will make her pay. However, Florida has not had to play much defense, due to both great pitching and struggling opponent lineups. It’s yet to be seen if this defense can back up a struggling pitcher or keep a game close if the bats aren’t on. This weekend at the Bubly Invitational, Florida needs to keep the bats hot and the pitchers need to stay on top of their stuff.

What’s Next

It’s a quick turnaround for the Gators, as they’ll be back in action in the Bubly Invitational starting today. They’ll play host to Boston College, Providence, Duke and Binghamton throughout the weekend with six games on the schedule. First pitch today against Boston College is at 6 p.m.

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About Hannah Getman

Hannah Getman is a second-year sports and media major at the University of Florida.

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