Florida Baseball At Tennessee For SEC Opening Series

The No.7 Florida baseball team (16-2) is back on the road to face No. 2 Tennessee (17-0) in its first SEC series of the season.

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The Gators are 157-97 against the Volunteers, with a 69-49 away record. In their last trip to Lindsey Nelson Stadium, the Gators won the series (W 6-1, W 9-3, L 14-2). A win for Florida would be its second undefeated takedown this week. Furthermore, a sweep would be its fourth of the season.

SEC Showcase

After dominating Florida State, the Gators are ready for SEC play. On Tuesday, they looked strong in most aspects of the game. At the plate, the Gators had eight hits and seven runs. Colby Shelton hit a home run, while Justin Nadeau and Blake Cyr tallied on a pair of doubles. On the mound, the pitching staff had an excellent rotation. Through four pitchers, the Gators threw 10 strikeouts, walked two, and although they gave up six hits, the Seminoles only had two runs. Overall, Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan was happy with Florida’s performance, especially being on the road.

In order for the Gators to come out on top this weekend, they need to stop leaving players on base. After Tuesday’s game, Coach O’Sullivan said the main area of improvement will be coming through when there are no outs and Gators on the corners. It will be crucial for the Gators to take advantage of any offensive momentum and bring in runs against Tennessee.

The reigning College World Series Champions, the Tennessee Volunteers, have been explosive so far this season. They’ve defeated two ranked teams, Oklahoma and Arizona. Coming off a 4-2 win against West Georgia, the Volunteers have room for improvement when they face the Gators. The ‘Vols pitching staff went through nine pitchers, striking out six, giving up five hits and two runs, but walked one. Furthermore, the ‘Vols offense matched the Wolves hits at five and walked nine times.

Game Time

Florida’s starting pitchers are right-handed pitcher Liam Peterson (4-0, 0.86 ERA) on Friday, RHP Aidan King (3-0, 0.55 ERA) on Saturday, and Sunday is to be determined.

Tennessee’s starting pitchers include RHP Liam Doyle (3-0, 0.44 ERA), RHP Marcus Phillips (1-0, 1.42 ERA), and Sunday is also to be determined.

Game 1 begins Friday at 6:30 p.m. You can catch the game live on SEC Network+ or listen in at ESPN 98.1-FM/850-AM WRUF + WJXL 1010-AM starting a 6:25 p.m.

Saturday’s Game 2 is set for a 3:30 p.m. start, moved up due to the threat of inclement weather.The game will begin on SEC Network+ and move to SEC Network around 4 p.m. once the previously-scheduled softball broadcast window ends.

Game 2 on Sunday is still at 1 p.m. (SECN+).