Florida Softball Set For Five Straight At Home

Following the Sun Devil Classic in Arizona, the No. 3 Florida softball team returns home on a five-game win streak.

The Gators will play a midweek game against FGCU before turning their attention to the weekend and the Florida Invitational. They made history on Sunday, shattering program single-game records in both runs scored and hits in their win against Iowa State, 24-3. The Gators, and the Florida faithful, hope to see even more of that dominance on their home turf.

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Eagles Landing

Florida (18-1) opens its week at 6 p.m. Wednesday against  Florida Gulf Coast. The Eagles are 6-12 and on a two-game losing streak, not the time for a matchup against the terror that are the Gators bats. While the game is not part of the invitational, Florida will not want to drop one at home, especially after its huge weekend.

Last season, the Gators beat the team from Fort Myers, 6-0. Florida leads with nine wins all-time against the Eagles to just two losses. The game should be a quick tune-up for the Gators, but they should be weary of letting their recent dominance go to their heads.

Playing Host

After Wednesday’s matchup, the Gators host the Florida Invitational starting Friday. They hope to show their guests a good time, and dish out a few losses. These visitors include FAMU out of Tallahassee, Alabama’s Troy and Samford and Western Michigan.

Florida will open against Samford at 5:30 p.m. Friday. The teams have not met since 2002, a 4-0 Samford win. This season, the Bulldogs are 8-5. They come to Gainesville following a 10-0 win against UAB. Sophomore Katie Campbell is a Samford player who the Gators will need to keep an eye on. She’s batting .419 to start the season and leads the Bulldogs in hits, runs batted in and slugging percentage.

https://twitter.com/SamfordSB/status/1894148251151954193

Following the Samford game, the Gators play a double-header Saturday. Their first game of the day is against the 9-6 Troy Trojans at 11:30 a.m. The Trojans have had an up-and-down season, full of big wins and big losses. They picked up a huge Power Four win against Wisconsin, 6-2, at the USF Tournament last weekend.

Senior infielder Cassidy Boltz is a major contributor to the Trojans lineup. She leads the team in slugging percentage, hits, runs batted in and home runs. Along with junior infielder Kayden Dunn, who’s batting .415, she will be a player to look out for in this game.

Western Michigan is next up on Florida’s five-game slate. The Broncos take the field against the Gators on Saturday at 2 p.m. They’re 5-8, but have a notable win against Michigan State, 8-0, earlier in the season.

The Broncos are led by senior Kailey O’Connor and fifth-year Jensen Gremillion in the circle. O’Conner has allowed just 15 runs this season and leads the pitching staff in strikeouts while Gremillion leads the team in innings pitched. Both have given up 22 hits this season.

DUBS UP!!

Kailey O'Connor pitches an absolute gem for the complete game and Taylor Wolfe drives in two runs and scores on a WP as the Broncos take down UT-Martin! pic.twitter.com/WEx1Iav2Os

— Western Michigan Softball (@WMUSoftball) February 24, 2025

Florida’s final opponent of the tournament is FAMU on Sunday at 2 p.m. The Gators are 16-0 at home all-time against the Rattlers and have dropped just one game to FAMU in program history. The Rattlers are 3-9 this season and are on a five-game losing streak.

What To Expect

This week should be an easy one for the Gators. They have no ranked matchups and face just two opponents with winning records. If they can keep the energy up and not let their recent success go to their heads, the Gators should have no problem with any of these teams.

As shown in the Sun Devil Classic, Florida’s lineup does not have a single weak spot. Each one of these teams will have trouble in the circle against this dominant Gators lineup. There’s nowhere to hide defensively against the Gators. They’ll take advantage of any weakness these teams show.

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Where to Watch

Wednesday’s game against FGCU is available on SEC Network+ at 6 p.m. The Florida Invitational is not televised.