Owls Meet 6th Ranked Gators for Two in Gainesville

Florida Atlantic at No. 6 Florida | Condron Family Ballpark 
Series DetailsGainesville, Fla. | Tue., March 7, 6 p.m. I Wed., March 8, 6 p.m.
Game CoverageLive Stats HERE; Watch Live: SEC Network+ I Listen HERE                           
Tuesday, March 7, 6 p.m.FAU — Evan Waterbor (LHP) vs. Yoel Tejeda Jr. (RHP)
Wednesday, March 8, 6 p.m.FAU – Tyler Murphy (RHP) vs. TBD
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University baseball team will look to get back on track on Tuesday night when they meet No. 6 Florida for a two-game series in Gainesville.  

Evan Waterbor will make his third career start on Tuesday night. The senior has a 1.80 ERA so far in 10 innings. He’s guided the Owls to wins over UCF and No. 22 Miami in the last two weeks. Freshman Tyler Murphy is projected to get the call on Wednesday after three impressive relief outings to start his FAU career.

OWLS IN REVIEW

The Owls were held in check by UCONN in a weekend sweep – the first time they’ve been the victim of a sweep in nearly two years. The offense totaled 19 hits and seven runs in the three games after averaging over 11 hits and nine runs in the season’s first eight games.

From a pitching perspective, starters Hunter Cooley and Jacob Josey gave the Owls a chance on Friday and Saturday. Cooley struck out five and allowed three earned in six innings in the series opener. Josey conceded just one earned run in 6.2 on Saturday.

THE OPPONENT

The Gators are coming off a series win over Miami, highlighted by a run-rule 14-4 victory on Sunday. Offensively, freshman Cade Kurland leads the way with a .449 average. Kurland has at least one hit in every game where he’s registered an at-bat this season. In nine of those 11 games, he’s recorded multiple hits. Sophomore Jac Caglianone is another name to watch. A two-way player who pitches and plays first base, Caglianone leads all of Division I so far with 10 home runs.

Outfielder Wyatt Langford is the reigning SEC Player of the Week after finishing the week 10-for-20 with three HRs and six RBI.

Yoel Tejeda Jr. is the Gators’ projected starter for Tuesday. The freshman will be making his third career start. He is 0-0 so far with a 4.05 ERA in 6.2 innings. Tejeda went 2.2 in his last start last Wednesday against Jacksonville.

OPPONENT HISTORY

The Owls and Gators last met in 2021 when FAU came away with a 3-2 victory. Overall, the Owls have won three of the last five with UF dating back to the 2018 Gainesville Regional.

UPCOMING

The Owls return home on Friday to start a four-game series against Harvard. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. A midweek, afternoon contest against Bradley will follow on March 15 before C-USA play begins March 17 versus UTSA in San Antonio.

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