WHAT HAPPENED: No. 1-seed Texas smashed three homers, including a tone-setting three-run shot in the first inning, sending fourth-seeded Florida into the elimination side of the Women’s College World Series bracket with a 10-0 run-rule victory Saturday night at Devon Park in Oklahoma City.
Longhorns junior Mac Morgan had a no-hitter going into the Gators’ fifth until Katie Kistler<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/katie-kistler/16244>, the home run hero in UF’s 1-0 first-round win Thursday night over Oklahoma State, broke up the no-no with a hard ground ball that kicked off the second baseman’s glove. Morgan got the next batter, Emily Wilkie<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/emily-wilkie/16248> to ground into a double play, and pinch-hitter Baylee Goddard<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/baylee-goddard/16242> on a grounder to third to end the game before the stadium lights had even come on.
The tone was set early. After Morgan set UF down in order (with a couple strikeouts) to open the game, Longhorns leadoff batter Bella Dayton greeted UF freshman starter Keagan Rothrock<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/keagan-rothrock/16558>, who two-hit the Cowgirls two nights earlier, with a mashed line-drive single off the wall in left. After a sac bunt moved the runner to second, Dayton scored on a ground single to right by Viviana Martinez to go up 1-0. Rothrock then hit clean-up batter Reese Atwood, putting runners at first and second with just out.
When Katie Stewart, the Longhorns’ fifth batter, ripped a double to left center Gators coach Tim Walton<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/coaches/tim-walton/1730> made a move. Down 2-0, he pulled Rothrock after just 14 pitches and called on freshman Ava Brown<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/ava-brown/16553> to switch from first base to the circle. Brown, making just her third appearance of the postseason, was greeted by Alyssa Washington with a three-run homer into the left-center bleachers to dump the Gators into a 5-0 hole.
Two innings later, it was 9-0 after the Longhorns struck for a pair of two-out homers — a solo shot by Martinez and then, after back-to-back singles, a three-run shot by Stewart — to push UT past the run-rule threshold. UF went quietly from there.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Given the Longhorns came in giving up just 2.24 runs per game and have three outstanding pitchers with ERAs under 2.00, that Washington homer and 5-0 lead out of the box was an ominous start, to say the least.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: There’s a reason the Longhorns are the No. 1 team in the country. Remember, they beat Stanford 4-0 in Thursday’s opening round, so make that two shutouts in two WCWS games. Texas is also the No. 1 offensive team in the country and demonstrated as much Saturday at the Gators’ expense, finishing with 10 hits and 10 runs through just four innings. The Longhorns came to OKC batting .379 as a team and averaging 8.0 runs per game.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: The shutout was the Gators’ first in 40 games this season. Read on.
UP NEXT: Florida (52-14) will face 14th-seeded Alabama (39-19) in an all-Southeastern Conference elimination game Sunday beginning at 3 p.m. ET. The Gators took two of three from the Crimson Tide during their regular-season series at Tuscaloosa, winning the first two games 2-0 and 11-2, then dropping the third 3-0. The latter was way back on March 11, and marked the last time UF was shut out this season.
FOLLOW THE GATORS
FloridaGators.com<http://www.floridagators.com/softball/>
Florida Softball on Twitter<http://twitter.com/GatorsSB>
Head Coach Tim Walton on Twitter<https://twitter.com/_TimWalton>
Florida Softball on Facebook<http://www.facebook.com/GatorsSB>
