Florida Baseball Stumbles Again In Blowout Loss At UCF

Coming off a 13-7 loss to Miami on Sunday, the No. 7 Florida Gators struggled once again in falling 13-3 on the road against UCF on Tuesday night. The Knights (9-3) took control early and never looked back to hand the Gators their second consecutive defeat in convincing fashion.

Final from Orlando.

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— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) March 5, 2025

UCF Strikes First, Florida Responds

Florida (11-2) started with promise in the top of the first when leadoff hitter Hayden Yost singled, but UCF quickly erased the momentum by inducing a double play and a fly out to end the inning.

The Knights wasted no time getting on the board. After a one-out double, the Knights crushed a two-run homer off Florida starter Matthew Jenkins, giving UCF an early 2-0 lead.

The Gators answered in the second inning. Brody Donay led off with a single and later stole second. After a walk to Landon Stripling, Luke Heyman and Blake Cyr delivered back-to-back RBI singles to tie the game at 2-2. However, UCF turned another double play to end the inning, preventing Florida from taking the lead.

UCF Pulls Away

The Knights reclaimed the lead in the fourth. Luke McNeillie came in to relieve Jenkins after a one-out triple. The Knights added an RBI single to reclaim a 3-2 lead.

Disaster struck for the Gators in the fifth. McNeillie hit a batter and allowed a three-run homer that extended UCF’s lead to 6-2. Florida’s offense remained quiet, stranding runners and struggling to put pressure on the Knights’ bullpen.

UCF put the game away in the sixth inning by taking advantage of Florida’s pitching struggles. Nikko Janssens allowed four runs and  Christian Rodriguez followed him on the mound to give up two more runs that putUCF up 10-2.

The Gators’ offense never found its rhythm, recording just one hit between the sixth and eighth innings. Meanwhile, UCF continued to pile on by adding three more runs in the eighth to extend the lead to 13-2.

Brendan Lawson provided one of the lone bright spots for Florida by launching a solo home run in the ninth inning that settled the margin at 13-3.

Third of the year for B-Law 💣#GoGators // 📺 https://t.co/dILkBAHXRl pic.twitter.com/NuRiUoRMEK

— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) March 5, 2025

Pitching Woes Continue

Jenkins (3.1 IP, 3R, 2ER, 4K) took the loss, while McNeillie, Janssens, Rodriguez and Blaine Rowland all struggled in relief. The Gators’ staff allowed 13 runs on 13 hits, walking four and hitting three batters.

Up Next

The Gators look to rebound Wednesday when they return home to host FAU (10-1) at 6 p.m. (SEC Network+ and ESPN 98.1-FM/850-AM at 5:55 p.m.)