Florida begins week two of the 2022 season with a pair of midweek matchups against Atlantic Sun Conference opponents, traveling to Stetson on Tuesday before hosting North Florida on Wednesday.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – With five total games on tap, Florida begins week two of the 2022 season with a pair of midweek matchups against Atlantic Sun Conference opponents, traveling to Stetson on Tuesday before hosting North Florida on Wednesday. Tuesday’s road game at Stetson will stream on ESPN+ at 6:30 p.m. while Wednesday’s home showdown with North Florida will air on SEC Network+ at 7 p.m.
Florida went a combined 5-1 against these two teams in 2021, going 2-0 in a home-and-home vs. North Florida while delivering a 3-1 record vs. Stetson. The Gators went 3-0 against the Hatters at home last season, but dropped the lone road matchup to snap an eight-game winning streak over Stetson.
The Gators hold a significant lead in the all-time series against both teams, boasting a 83-35 record against Stetson and a 15-7 mark over North Florida. The series with Stetson has been more evenly matched in DeLand, with the Orange & Blue playing to a 35-24 record away from home. Meanwhile, Florida is 12-4 all-time against North Florida in Gainesville. Under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan, Florida is 8-1 vs. Stetson and 15-5 vs. UNF.
Pitching Matchups
Stetson | Tuesday | 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+) UNF | Wednesday | 7 p.m. (SECN+)
Opponent LHP Anthony Defabbia (0-0, 0.00 ERA) TBA
Florida LHP Timmy Manning (0-0. 12.00 ERA) TBD
Links WATCH<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.espn.com_watch_player_-5F_id_8ee7e03b-2D918f-2D4746-2Db6ec-2D0ea3758c80a0&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=Z5GJEgCVhRfc_rzkT7gDyssFNmKe4icKE4Vw1skGfgLyllMsinGQ1PpqasH4zHDB&s=ek4po1TWulh4ETDInhhdC2l5kt-uDUgHFLjodb17gP0&e= > | LISTEN<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_watch_-3FLive-3D3737-26type-3DArchive&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=Z5GJEgCVhRfc_rzkT7gDyssFNmKe4icKE4Vw1skGfgLyllMsinGQ1PpqasH4zHDB&s=WL5VhW5rI6Pns7vdqyojVW23xtpLhbIQtNQdDZe-vuQ&e= > WATCH<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.espn.com_watch_player_-5F_id_41527fdb-2Dda82-2D4873-2Dac7c-2D58a00de6482a&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=Z5GJEgCVhRfc_rzkT7gDyssFNmKe4icKE4Vw1skGfgLyllMsinGQ1PpqasH4zHDB&s=Cu0o99kzNXL7cd-UYj6d8P6ZNKZ-hNP7VHLB9ycVMEY&e= > | LISTEN<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_watch_-3FLive-3D3739-26type-3DLive&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=Z5GJEgCVhRfc_rzkT7gDyssFNmKe4icKE4Vw1skGfgLyllMsinGQ1PpqasH4zHDB&s=oNdxnBYnxXsaRco1SiquXxJCZPb_5RxDGOopSRxPVfc&e= >
Entering week two, Florida is ranked No. 15 in the D1Baseball top-25 poll. Collegiate Baseball has the Gators ranked the highest of all the major publications, putting Florida at No. 13 in the nation.
LAST TIME OUT
After opening the 2022 season with a thrilling 7-2 victory over Liberty in front of a program-record crowd, the Gators dropped the final-two games of the series and enter this week’s midweek matchups with a 1-2 overall record.
SCOUTING THE HATTERS AND OSPREY
Florida already went head-to-head with an Atlantic Sun Conference opponent in Liberty on opening weekend, and the Gators will have the chance to battle two more such foes this upcoming week. In the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll, Stetson was picked to finish third in the conference behind Liberty and Florida Gulf Coast, while North Florida was projected to place sixth. The Hatters are off to 2-1 start to the year, picking up opening-weekend wins over Delaware and Manhattan while falling to No. 4 Notre Dame. As for North Florida, the Osprey went 1-2 against Presbyterian to open the 2022 campaign. Both programs are coming off 2021 season in which they played close to .500 baseball, with Stetson wrapping up the year at 26-23 (10-8 ASUN) and North Florida posting a 22-23 (11-7 ASUN) mark.
BARCO COLLECTS SEC, NATIONAL HONORS
Left-handed pitcher Hunter Barco earned the victory on opening night, pitching 6.0 shutout, one-hit innings while striking out a career-high 11 batters – the most by a Gator on opening day since at least 1999. The performance earned Barco SEC Pitcher of the Week honors as well as recognition as one of Collegiate Baseball’s National Players of the Week.
STERLIN SLAMS
Coming off an All-SEC Freshman Team 2021 season, outfielder Sterlin Thompson launched a pair of home runs including a grand slam on opening night en route to finishing 2-for-4 with a career-high five RBI. The two homers were Thompson’s first-ever at Florida Ballpark, as each of his five homers in 2021 came on the road. Thompson currently leads the Gators in hits (four), home runs (two) and RBI (five).
SLATER-AID
One major takeaway from opening weekend was the emergence of redshirt freshman right-hander Ryan Slater as the Gators’ potential closer. Making the first-two appearances of his collegiate career, Slater entered the game with the bases loaded against Liberty on opening night and proceeded to retire each of the two batters he faced in order to earn the save. Slater again saw action in game three, tossing two shutout innings with just two walks allowed while striking out three. The Palm Harbor, Fla. native owns a 0.00 ERA across 2.2 innings pitched with a trio of strikeouts.
BT BOMBS FOR ZUNINO
With legendary Gators backstop Mike Zunino on hand for game three after throwing out the ceremonial first pitch, current Gators catcher BT Riopelle honored the 2012 Golden Spikes Award winner with a long two-run home run in the fourth inning. The long ball marked the first home run in Orange & Blue for Riopelle following his transfer from Coastal Carolina.
RECORD WEEKEND AT THE TURNSTILES
On opening night, Florida Ballpark welcomed a record crowd of 6,463 fans – the most in the history of the program. By the end of the weekend, the combined-series attendance reached 18,190, marking another program record for the largest attendance across a three-game series in team history.
2021 SEASON RECAP
After being ranked as the unanimous preseason No. 1 team one year ago, the Gators concluded the 2021 season at 38-22 overall and 17-13 in the SEC. In being chosen to host the 2021 NCAA Gainesville Regional, Florida continued its streak of a program-record 13-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances – a run which ranks third nationally. The 2021 season marked the 17th time that the Gators hosted an NCAA Regional in addition to signifying the team’s 36th all-time NCAA Regional appearance. Highlights of the 2021 campaign included series victories over No. 2 Vanderbilt and No. 3 Ole Miss, as well as an SEC Tournament semifinal run that saw the Gators open the event 3-0 and take down the eventual NCAA Champions in No. 8 Mississippi State via the run rule, 13-1.
15 YEARS OF SULLY
The 2022 campaign represents O’Sullivan’s 15th season as the head coach at Florida. Over the course of that time, O’Sullivan has amassed a record of 585-278 (.678), passing the legendary Dave Fuller (556-354-6) for the most wins in program history on March 9, 2021. O’Sullivan’s .678 winning percentage ranks third among all active Division I head coaches, while Florida’s .622 clip in SEC play since 2008 stands as the top mark in the conference.
BALLPARK OF THE YEAR
Opened in 2021, the state-of-the-art Florida Ballpark was named Ballpark Digest’s 2021 College Ballpark of the Year in December. Newly equipped with permanent outfield concessions and restrooms, Florida Ballpark features a 360-degree open concourse, shade structures for fans and high definition video and sound.
ALL-AMERICAN ENCORE
Reigning Third Team All-American outfielder Jud Fabian returns to Gainesville for a fourth season after producing a 2021 campaign that saw him become just the fifth Gator to hit 20 home runs in a single season. Finishing the year with a .249/.364/.560 batting line, Fabian was selected in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox with the 40th overall pick, but elected to return to the Gators after collecting Southeast-ABCA/Rawlings First Team, First Team All-SEC and SEC All-Defensive Team honors. Overall, the Ocala, Fla. native is a .247/.367/.506 career hitter with 32 homers, 26 doubles, 104 runs and 87 RBI in 135 games.
A VETERAN CORE
The Orange & Blue welcome back six positional starters from last year’s squad: Fabian, first baseman/designated hitter Kris Armstrong, first baseman/outfielder Kendrick Calilao, second baseman Colby Halter, shortstop Josh Rivera and 2021 Freshman All-SEC outfielder Sterlin Thompson. Florida’s veteran positional group aims to offset a young albeit talented Florida pitching staff anchored by 2021 Second Team Southeast All-Region left-hander Hunter Barco, who paced the team with 16 starts and 10 wins one year ago.
KEY LOSSES
20 letterwinners departed from last year’s NCAA Regional team including 13 pitchers. As a result, 387.2 of the 529 innings thrown by Florida pitchers last season came from players no longer on the roster, as just four of 16 Gators who saw mound work in 2021 are back in Orange & Blue. Among Florida’s key departures were right-handed pitchers Franco Aleman, Jack Leftwich, Tommy Mace, Christian Scott and Trey Van Der Weide. The Gators also lost a moderate amount of talent on the positional side due to the farewells of catcher Nathan Hickey, infielder Kirby McMullen and outfielder Jacob Young.
NEW BLOOD
The 2022 Florida Gators roster features a hybrid of experience mixed with young talent, as the team returns 19 letterwinners while welcoming in 17 newcomers. Despite having each of its top-three ranked signees ink Major League Baseball contracts last summer, the Gators still managed to recruit an impressive collection of sixteen freshmen and one transfer to finish as the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class according to Perfect Game (No. 2 at D1Baseball, Baseball America).
IMPACT FRESHMEN
Eight Gators were tabbed by D1Baseball as top-50 impact freshmen for the upcoming season: left-handed pitcher Pierce Coppola (No. 3), left-handed pitcher Philip Abner (No. 7), infielder Deric Fabian (No. 14), outfielder Michael Robertson (No. 15), right-handed pitcher Karl Hartman (No. 20), catcher Rene Lastres (No. 29), right-handed pitcher Brandon Neely (No. 33) and outfielder Ty Evans (No. 48).
SOPHOMORE BREAKOUTS
Second-year players Mac Guscette, Halter and Thompson enter 2022 primed for breakout seasons after impressing as freshmen one year ago. Both Halter and Thompson managed to bat above .300 in their debut campaigns across 150-plus at bats, finishing the year at .302 and .301, respectively. As Florida’s starting catcher down the stretch, Guscette batted .298 while exhibiting impressive skills on the defensive end. Outfielder/catcher Wyatt Langford has also made strides over the past calendar year and figures to receive significant playing time in left field early on.
PRESEASON ACCOLADES APPLENTY
Numerous Gators garnered recognition leading up to the 2022 season, beginning with a trio of preseason All-Americans in Barco (first team), Fabian (first team) and Thompson (third team). In particular, Barco received a consensus preseason All-America distinction, earning honors from every major publication. Barco and Fabian also received Preseason All-SEC First Team nods.
POSITIONAL STANDOUTS
A handful of Gators were ranked by D1Baseball as top players in the nation at their respective positions heading into the season: Barco (No. 7 starting pitcher), Halter (No. 9 second baseman), Fabian (No. 10 outfielder), Rivera (No. 16 shortstop), Guscette (No. 19 catcher), Thompson (No. 20 outfielder), Abner (No. 28 relief pitcher), Armstrong (No. 41 first baseman), Coppola (No. 65 starting pitcher), right-handed pitcher Brandon Sproat (No. 101 starting pitcher) and right-handed pitcher Nick Pogue (No. 104 starting pitcher).
DRAFT BUZZ
After being selected 40th overall in last year’s draft, Fabian is again projected as Florida’s top prospect by MLB Pipeline, coming in as the No. 45 overall prospect for the 2022 MLB Draft. Barco follows closely behind at No. 54, while Thompson (No. 90) and Sproat (No. 98) fell just inside the top 100. The Gators’ middle infield duo of Halter and Rivera recently received draft buzz as well, with D1baseball ranking the former as the No. 60 college prospect and the latter sitting at No. 78. All six of the aforementioned players were ranked as top-30 prospects in the SEC by D1Baseball, in addition to Pogue, who was tabbed the conference’s No. 50 prospect.
ON DECK
Following this week’s midweek slate, the Gators host Georgia State for a three-game weekend series at Florida Ballpark from Feb. 25-27. All three games will stream live on SEC Network+.
###
