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The Florida softball team has had a high-powered offense at the plate all season long in 2023. But that offense was nowhere to be found on Sunday afternoon in a 3-0 loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Gators only recorded a single hit all day long in perhaps their worst showing at the plate this year.
Katie Kistler secured Florida’s only hit on the day with a double in the seventh inning. UF tallied up four walks and one hit-by-pitch, but with no action on the bats, these plays had little to no effect on the game.
In the circle, Elizabeth Hightower did everything she could to keep the Gators in the game. Through four innings pitched, she allowed four hits, four walks and three runs (two earned). Rylee Trlicek went on to relieve her in the fifth inning and pitched the final two innings, only allowing one hit and one walk.
For the Gamecocks, Donnie Gobourne pitched as good of a game as you can get. In seven innings pitched, she struck out a staggering 15 batters. She also nearly came away with a no-hitter before Kistler’s seventh-inning knock spoiled it. Nevertheless, her performance on Sunday will likely be talked about for a long time in the Gamecock clubhouse.
Gamecocks Take Over Early In The Afternoon
Florida started the game on the right foot offensively. South Carolina surrendered a hit-by-pitch and two walks, allowing UF to load the bases in the top of the first. However, with two outs already on the board, Sam Roe went down on a swinging strikeout to strand all three runners.
Things only got uglier for the Gator offense from there. In the second inning, all three of Florida’s outs came on strike outs. And South Carolina plated its first run of the game to take a 1-o lead.
B-2 | @Rileybrooklyn22 👋☄️
Her 6th home run of the season #Gamecocks🐔 1 | 0 🐊 pic.twitter.com/nJfjaMusau
— Gamecock Softball (@GamecockSoftbll) April 2, 2023
Despite surrendering a double in the following at-bat, Hightower and the Gators got the situation back under control from there. After a sacrifice bunt led to one out on the board for the Gamecocks, they grounded into a double play in their following plate appearance. Rather than responding in the third inning, the Gators went down 1-2-3 in the top of the inning before allowing the Gamecocks to score two more runs.
Hightower surrendered two walks to lead off the bottom of the third. A double then brought home both runners who had walked and South Carolina extended its lead to 3-0.
B-3 | @Rileybrooklyn22 comes through again with a double to score @zoe_laneaux and @black_aniyah scores on the throwing error.
🐔 3 | 0 🐊 pic.twitter.com/tY2dDjNnC3
— Gamecock Softball (@GamecockSoftbll) April 2, 2023
The Gators Cannot Response In The Box
Now facing a three-run deficit, the Gators needed to find a way to spark a comeback at the plate. Yet no matter what they did, they could not get a hit and they only managed to land a single runner on base in the fourth inning via a walk from Roe.
In the fifth inning, the Gators went down in order, two via the strikeout. The same thing happened in the sixth inning: a pop-out for Charla Echols, and a pair of Ks for Reagan Walsh and Pal Egan.
Roe and Sarah Longley led off the seventh inning with back-to-back strikeouts, continuing Florida’s offensive woes. Kistler then finally got a hit just one out away from falling victim to a no-hitter, as she belted a double into left center to briefly keep the Gators alive.
But Olivia Gigante struck out swinging in the following (and final) at-bat to close the book on an ugly offensive day for the Gators.
She finishes it off with another strikeout!
Gamecocks win! pic.twitter.com/aU9z8kLDVr— Gamecock Softball (@GamecockSoftbll) April 2, 2023
Sunday’s loss resulted in Florida’s second consecutive series loss in conference play. The Gators hope to snap out of their cold streak later this week in a three-game series with the Auburn Tigers. Game one will take place on April 6 at 6 p.m. at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
