Jac Caglianone went 4-for-4 while freshmen Liam Peterson and Luke McNeillie combined for 6 2/3 shutout innings.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – No. 4 Florida plated one run in the second and six in the eighth to outlast Columbia, 7-3, in front of the largest regular-season crowd in team history (8,437) at Condron Family Ballpark on Saturday night.
Slugger Jac Caglianone<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/jac-caglianone/16365> went a perfect 4-for-4 at the dish, tying his single-game high for hits. He also chipped in two RBI, as did Dale Thomas<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/dale-thomas/16378> (1-for-2), who homered and walked in the victory. Ty Evans<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/ty-evans/16368> (1-for-4) paced the Orange & Blue with three RBI and also launched his first long ball of the season.
Starting pitchers Liam Peterson<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/liam-peterson/16631> and Andy Leon traded zeros in the first, but Thomas put the Gators (4-1) on the board in the bottom of the second. After working a full count, Thomas swatted a solo homer to left-center for his first of the campaign.
Peterson blanked the Lions (0-2) in the second and the third, allowing just one hit and one walk while fanning three through three innings. The freshman ran into trouble in the fourth, but utilized consecutive strikeouts to work out of a bases-loaded jam and keep the shutout intact.
Right-hander Luke McNeillie<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/luke-mcneillie/16629> took over for Peterson in the fifth. The freshman gave up a leadoff double but rebounded to strand the runner for a scoreless fifth. McNeillie navigated the Gators into the seventh, then was lifted in favor of closer Brandon Neely<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/brandon-neely/16373> with two outs in the frame.
Neely struck out Griffin Palfrey to end the seventh, then worked a perfect eighth inning to hold the one-run lead in check. The Florida offense came alive and took advantage, as Evans unloaded on a two-run homer to left-center to push the lead to 3-0.
Thereafter, Tyler Shelnut<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/tyler-shelnut/16376> reached on a fielding error in left and scored on a sacrifice fly to right off the bat of Thomas. With two outs, Caglianone drove in a pair with a single to right-center followed by a bases-loaded walk from Evans to push the lead to 7-0.
In the top of the ninth, Columbia broke into the scoring column. With two outs in the frame, Cole Hage uncorked a three-run homer to right to bring the score to its final tally of 7-3.
McNeillie (1-0) earned his first-career victory after hurling 2 2/3 shutout innings of relief. He allowed three hits and did not issue a walk while fanning one.
Columbia starter Andy Leon (0-1) was hung with the loss. He pitched five innings of one-run ball on two hits and two walks, striking out four.
NOTABLES
* Saturday night’s official attendance was 8,437 – the third-largest crowd in team history and the biggest ever for a regular-season affair.
* Making his first weekend start, Peterson threw four scoreless innings on two hits and three walks while striking out six.
* Caglianone tied his career high with four hits.
* Thomas hit his first homer of the season including his first-ever at Condron Family Ballpark.
* Evans also swatted his first home run of the campaign.
* Dating back to last season, Florida is 26-4 in regular season non-conference games and has won 17 of its last 18 such contests.
* The Gators are 25-5 in home series since 2023.
* Florida is 33-11 in weekend series since 2023 and 42-14 across the team’s previous 19 series.
* Florida improved to 7-0 all-time against Columbia, all of which have been played in Gainesville.
* The Gators rise to 6-0 vs. the Lions under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/coaches/kevin-o-sullivan/1752>.
FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN O’SULLIVAN
On Peterson’s start and the win…
“I think you’re just amped up. His first start in his career at home, over 8,000 people. It’s expected. The bottom line is that he made some pitches and the stuff was really good again. Really easy decision to take him out after four after that emotional fourth inning, and then obviously getting Luke out there for the first time. He would’ve pitched earlier, but he had a blister on his middle finger. I thought both of them were outstanding. As a club, we needed a game like that. It was a one-nothing game through seven, every pitch mattered, every play mattered, every at-bat mattered, so it was just a great game all around. Their starter was outstanding as well. They had a good plan and it was just a really good game. I think it’s one that’s going to help us moving forward.”
On Thomas’ impact…
“He was an emotional leader last year, too, even though he didn’t play. So, he’s older, he’s played college baseball for four or five years now. He’s kind of that spark plug and plays really, really good defense at third base. He’s an emotional leader and he brings his energy every day. We’re just glad that he’s getting the opportunity to play and he’s making the most of it, for sure.”
On McNeillie and Neely’s performances…
“He was really good. With both of them, with Liam and Luke, the situation bases loaded and one out and had to figure out a way to get through it. Luke comes in and gives up a leadoff double and figures out a way to make some big pitches. Both of them, you couldn’t ask for anything more. The plan with Neely was to use him in the eighth and ninth. They got arguably one of their best hitters in Palfrey coming up, so he was ready to go so we brought him in there for the last out there in the seventh. I thought his stuff was really sharp, too. And that was the thing going in, he’d only thrown one inning over the first four games. He needs to pitch. Even if the game had been out of hand, one way or the other, he was going to go to the mound tonight at least for an inning or so.”
UP NEXT
The Gators and Lions meet in the series finale on Sunday at 11 a.m. on SEC Network+. Jac Caglianone<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/jac-caglianone/16365> (7-4, 4.34 ERA) makes his season debut on the mound against Columbia’s JD Ogden (0-2, 10.98 ERA).
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