The Gators received a gritty performance in the circle from Keagan Rothrock and received late game heroics from Reagan Walsh at the plate.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The 10th-ranked Florida softball team defeated No. 5 LSU, 4-1, to open the series Saturday in front of 2,161 fans at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
The Gators (33-5, 8-2 SEC) and the Tigers (30-6, 8-5 SEC) were locked into a pitcher’s duel between UF freshman right-hander Keagan Rothrock (17-3) and LSU’s sophomore Sydney Berzon (13-2). Berzon gave up a double to Kendra Falby in the bottom of the first inning for the games lone hit until the bottom of the fifth inning with Walsh singled through the right side.
Rothrock however issued a couple of walks, but did not allow a single hit to the Tigers until the top of the sixth inning when LSU was able to string together back-to-back-to-back singles that pushed across the first run of the game. The Tigers’ first run of the game came on a hit-error up the first base line that would have just loaded the bases, but a costly error allowed the runner at third to race home for an unearned run.
Florida’s offense responded immediately in the bottom half of the sixth inning to take the lead 4-1. Falby led off with a sharply hit check swing down the third base line and deflected off the glove in front of the face of LSU’s third baseman. Wallace swatted a single back to the circle that clipped the top of Berzon’s glove to put a pair on. Korbe Otis scored Falby in the next at-bat on and RBI single up the middle, and Otis and Wallace advanced to second and third on a wild throw home by LSU’s center fielder.
Walsh put a cap on the Gators scoring in the frame and the game as she lifted the 1-2 offering from Berzon over the left center field wall. The three-run home run was the 13th of the season for the Redondo Beach, Calif. native.
LSU attempted to rally back in the top of the seventh and was able to scratch across a run, but Rothrock and the Gators limited the damage to only that as Rothrock earned a strikeout for the final out.
Game two of the series is set for Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Notables:
* Florida improves to 38-36 all-time against LSU with today’s win.
* The win against No. 5 LSU is the Gators highest ranked win of the season.
* Overall the program is 9-4 on the year versus ranked opponents.
* Gators also improved to 4-2 on the season when playing on TV this year.
* Skylar Wallace stole two bases in today’s game and now has 108 over her career, which ranks second only to Kelsey Stewart’s 113.
* Reagan Walsh hit her 13th home run of the season which was the game winning shot, her home run extends the program streak to 13 consecutive games of hitting at-least one home run.
* There were no stolen bases against the Gators today and Jocelyn Erickson holds a .091 (1-for-11) stolen base against average.
* Keagan Rothrock tallied her 14th complete-game of the season, which is tied for third overall among UF freshmen pitchers all-time along with Amanda Moore (2001).
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