Gators Softball Prepares For Bubly Invitational

Following back-to-back dominant victories over Jacksonville and Stetson, Gators softball will now play six games in four days for the Bubly Invitational.

UF hosts the invitational, which will run from Thursday to Sunday.

Florida will face Boston College, Providence and Binghamton before concluding the invitational with a match-up against No.14 Duke, which will be the second time the Gators face a ranked opponent this season.

Overview of Teams

Florida kicks off the tournament with a match against Boston College on Thursday, followed up by a Friday doubleheader of Providence and Duke. The Gators will play two more games against BC and Binghamton on Saturday. The Gators will then face off against Duke to wrap up the invitational on Sunday.

Of the four teams the Gators will face, three have a winning record. The Providence Friars are 0-4 on the season thus far, with two of those losses by the run-rule. Meanwhile, BC, Binghamton and Duke are all 3-2.

Boston College is on a two-game winning streak, coming off a dominant game against Indiana State which saw the team score eight runs. Hannah Slike led the way for the Eagles, going 2-for-3 with 2 RBI on the night.

The Binghamton Bearcats also come into the tournament on a hot streak. After starting the season with consecutive losses, they have since won three in a row. In each of those victories, they held the opposing team to only one run. Binghamton boasts a strong pitching lineup, with Brianna Roberts and Delaney Glover as the standouts. Roberts led the team in ERA last season, while Glover allowed no earned runs in her single start of the year.

Duke will undoubtedly be Florida’s biggest challenge. The reigning ACC champions, both of the Blue Devils’ losses this season have come to ranked opponents (Missouri and Northwestern). Aminah Vega earned All-ACC honors in the preseason, and she fully earned it— she leads the team in various categories this season, including batting average, OPS, and RBIs.

Florida Players To Watch

Freshman phenom Taylor Shumaker currently leads the NCAA in home runs, with six on the year. She is the only first-year player in the top ten. If she can continue performing the way she has, Florida’s path to victory becomes a lot smoother.

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The Gators will also need to depend on their pitchers to get the job done. While Keagan Rothrock and Ava Brown have been lights-out, there are times where Kara Hammock has looked shaky in the circle. Like coach Tim Walton said after Tuesday’s game against Jacksonville, Hammock’s biggest problem is command, and command can be fixed.

Though all four teams have gotten off to somewhat sluggish starts, it is imperative that Florida does not underestimate them. The Gators haven’t trailed for a single second this season. If they want to win out, the team needs to continue getting off to those explosive starts.

Where to Watch

Friday’s match-up against Duke on Friday will be broadcasted on SEC Network+ at 7. pm.