No.3 Gators Softball Prepares For Sun Devil Classic

The No. 3 Gators will leave Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium after a successful Bubbly Invitational and head to Arizona for the Sun Devil Classic, taking on five teams over three days.

Overview of Teams

Florida (13-1) will start the softball tournament in Tempe with a doubleheader against California Baptist and Arizona State on Friday.

It’s the Gators’ first matchup against CBU (5-7), which enters Friday on a three-game losing streak. Kalena Burns is the player to watch for the Lancers, leading the team in batting average and RBI. The Sun Devils (7-4) are a more familiar foe — the Gators’ all-time record against Arizona State sits at 5-5. Though ASU is also coming off a loss, the team has won all of its games against ranked opponents this season.

Florida then plays against New Mexico State and Grand Canyon on Saturday night in Phoenix. NM State (8-4) enters the tournament on a heater, scoring 10 or more runs in three of its last four victories. Desirae Spearman and Lauren Garcia have led the charge for the Aggies at the plate. However, NM State’s pitching performance has been relatively weak, as nobody in the lineup has an ERA below 4.00.

Grand Canyon (10-2) is Florida’s toughest matchup of the invitational. The team’s biggest strength is pitching; the Antelopes have shut out their last two opponents and have a 1.59 ERA on the year, ranking 20th in the country.

The Gators close out the Classic with a matinee against Iowa State (4-5). Iowa native Jessie Clemons has been a stand-out player for the Cyclones, hitting .448 on the year. Meanwhile, Lauren Schurman leads the team in ERA.

Keys for the Gators

Despite the unexpected loss to Duke, the Gators have still proved to be one of the best teams in the country.

Florida ranks first in the nation in total RBI and runs, and second in hits and shutouts. Though freshman Taylor Shumaker‘s explosive start has cooled off a bit, she’s still tied for most home runs in the NCAA, with eight on the year. Pitcher Keagan Rothrock also continues to impress, already tallying six victories in the circle this season.

However, it’s critical that the Gators keep their momentum rolling. The loss against Duke was marked by quite a few errors and Florida looked out of its element for the first time all season.

Final #GoGators | Presented by @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/2k5WY8dcRA

— Gators Softball (@GatorsSB) February 17, 2025

Where to Watch

Friday’s game against Arizona State and Saturday’s game against Grand Canyon will both be broadcasted on ESPN+.

Florida’s match-up against UNF that was originally set for Wednesday was rescheduled for March 20.