Wyatt Langford Hits Two Homers as Gators Down Miami 10-4

The sixth ranked Gator baseball team (9-2) defeated the number 22 Miami Hurricanes (7-3) 10-4 Friday night in a come from behind win.

Brandon Sproat toed the rubber for the Gators with Gage Zeihl on the mound for the Hurricanes. Florida tallied 14 hits with Wyatt Langford leading the offense going 3-for-5 with two home runs. That was his sixth multi-homer game of his career.

Canes Start Swinging

Miami wasted no time swinging out of the gate. The first pitch Sproat delivered was ripped up the middle for a single by the Canes leadoff hitter Edgardo Villegas. He was advanced on a sacrifice bunt and CJ Kayfus followed with a single. Then came a 453 foot long ball from the Canes cleanup hitter Yohandy Morales. Miami took an early lead on the Gators 3-0 in the first – but not for long.

Wyatt Langford made it a two-run ballgame when he sent a bullet of a line drive over the left field wall.

Sproat started settling in well after he pitched a tough first inning. He posted two 1-2-3 innings in the second and third before Florida’s bats started mashing.

Florida’s Bats Dominate

The Gators responded with four runs in back-to-back innings to take a two run lead.

Jac Caglianone started the rally with a double that was ripped down the right field line. BT Riopelle followed with an RBI single and advanced to second on the throw. Ty Evans singled, plating Riopelle and the Gators made it a tie ballgame.

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Michael Robertson led off the fourth with a leadoff walk but was picked off by Ziehl. Cade Kurland singled and Langford brought him around to score on an RBI double. Jac Caglianone swapped bases with Langford as he laced an RBI double to make it a 5-3 ballgame.

Miami scored an unearned run in the sixth to make it a one run game.

Gators Yard Party

The sixth inning was a yard party for the Gators as they hit two home runs in one inning. Michael Robertson started things off with a triple to deep right field. Miami made a pitching change but the pinch-hitter Richie Schiekofer made him pay. He launched an opposite field, two-run home run to left just before Wyatt Langford would demolish a ball that completely left the ballpark outside right field. A two home run game for Langford who’s a projected first round draft pick in the ’23 MLB draft in June.

The Gators were up 8-4 going into the seventh inning. Sproat exited the mound after six innings pitched. Other than the first inning, the right handed pitcher was a dominant arm for the Gators on Friday night.

Sproat’s final line was six innings pitched, three earned runs with four hits given up.  He walked four and struck out nine in 100 total pitches, 60 of which were strikes.

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Two innings later, another ball left the park off a Gators bat. Colby Halter singled up the middle to leadoff the eighth. Cade Kurland would then hit his fifth home run of his freshman campaign to make it a 10-4 ballgame.

Cade Fisher’s Relief Pitching

Fisher entered the game in the seventh and provided three quality innings of relief. He’s been a complete strike thrower for Florida and had another solid outing as a freshman.

He threw three no-hit innings with a strikeout and kept his pitch count to 30, giving the Gators a chance to use him again over the weekend if need be.

The Gators won 10-4 and took the first game of a three game series.  Game 2 is set for Saturday at 2pm.

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