Florida outfielder Kendra Falby (27) celebrates after her first hit of the year as the Florida Gators face the North Florida Ospreys on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025, at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium in Gainesville, Fla. (Matthew Lewis/WRUF)

No. 8 Gators Swing To Victory Against No. 19 Ole Miss

Hannah Getman April 12, 2025 College Softball, Feature Sports News, Gators Softball, Gators Sports, SEC, Softball 122 Views

In what was a hitting clinic when the No. 8 Florida softball team took Game 1 of its series against No. 1o Ole Miss on Friday night. The teams combined for 24 hits in the dramatic 8-7 finish in Oxford. The Gators (36-8) are now 8-5 in conference play by recovering from their series loss to Arkansas.

Ole Miss Opens It Up

The Rebels (30-10, 6-7 SEC) drew first blood quickly in the bottom of the first. After a hit by pitch and walk, a grounder to third resulted in an error that scored the first run of the game. A single to right field on the next at bat drove in another to make it 2-0 Rebels. The right side seemed to be working for them as two more hits in the same spot drove in another run and loaded the bases with just one out.

Luckily for Keagan Rothrock (10-2) and the Gators, the damage was limited to just three runs. Mia Williams turned a double play to help the team escape the inning.

Second-Inning Surge

After a quick trip to the dugout, Williams traded her glove for her bat and stepped up to the plate. Once again, she improved the Gators hopes, sending a no-doubter over the left field fence to cut into the Rebels lead.

Kendra Falby kept it going later in the inning by clearing both runners on the bases with a triple and tying the game. She scored on the next at-bat when Korbe Otis served an RBI single up the middle. The Gators had quickly taken the lead.

Some More Back-and-Forth

The action continued into the bottom of the second. With two outs and runners on the corners, Ole Miss freshman Persy Llamas hit a hard ground ball toward shortstop Rylee Holtorf. The graduate student dove for the ball, to keep it in the infield and her attempt to flip it to second base. Williams could not hold on to the ball. The runner on second was safe and the runner on third scored.

Williams quickly made up for the drop at second. She smacked her second home run out of the park to start the third inning and put the Gators back on top. Ole Miss ace Miali Guachino could not seem to find her rhythm in this meeting. She walked two more batters before being pulled in the third in favor of senior Brianna Lopez.

Lopez managed to get a strikeout with the bases loaded, but that wouldn’t stop the Gators. Otis picked up her 33rd and 34th RBIs on the year, singling to center field and driving in two runs. Another strikeout stopped the Rebels bleeding. But, they now found themselves down 7-4 heading into the bottom of the third.

Rothrock quickly sat the Rebels down in the bottom of the inning, recording two strikeouts and a groundout. Lopez did the same to start the fourth, retiring the Gators in four batters.

Ole Miss got out to a quick start in the fourth, getting two runners on in two at-bats. Determined to stay in it, senior Lair Beautae swung on her first pitch, sending a homer over the right field fence. The game was all even at seven runs a piece.

Down to the Wire

With two outs in the top of the fifth, Otis repeated her earlier efforts. She singled again for her third hit of the day, driving in the runner on third to retake the Gators lead.

The team’s kept it interesting in the sixth, getting runners on and in scoring position. However, neither could drive any of them home. Going into the seventh and final inning, the Gators found themselves leading 8-7 with just six outs to go.

Falby quickly got on base to start the inning. She was stuck at first as Shumaker hit a deep fly out just one batter later. With one out and a runner on, Otis hit a line out and the Rebels picked off Falby for a double play. With just a one run cushion, Florida’s defense was under immense pressure.

Katelynn Oxley (3rd save) remained calm in the circle, retiring three straight batters to secure the one-run win.

Takeaways

The Gators found a way to put it all together in this one. They dominated a star pitcher, something they haven’t really been able to do this year. Despite the final score, the pitching staff battled, shutting down the Rebels to hold the lead at the end of the game. This was a hard-fought, impressive win for Florida and something the team can build on.

What’s Next

The series continues with Game 2 on Saturday. First pitch in Oxford is at 3 p.m. ET. The game is available to watch on SEC Network +.

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About Hannah Getman

Hannah Getman is a second-year sports and media major at the University of Florida.

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