A perfect game for Brombacher, Gators

In the midst of junior Stephanie Brombacher’s most efficient pitching performances in her Florida Gators softball career, no one on the roster had an idea how rare of a performance they were watching.

It wasn’t until the game neared a close that the players came to the realization that they were watching their ace toss a perfect game en route to Florida’s 10-0 five-inning victory over South Florida at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.

“No one even realized it until the last inning,” senior Francesca Enea said. “I was like, ‘Do you guys not realize what’s going on right now?’ They were like, ‘What? We have 10 runs and you’re No. 10?’”

Not even Brombacher realized what was unfolding before her eyes until it was almost etched into the Florida record books.

“I realized it right before the last pitch and was like, ‘Oh, wait. No one’s gotten a hit yet,’” Brombacher said. “Then she hit it and I was like, ‘Wait a minute. No one’s gotten on base yet. Please catch it! Please catch it!’”

Luckily for Brombacher she made a crucial call before the game that might have made the difference between a perfect game and a one-hitter. The team was issued new gloves before the season, but Brombacher said hers hasn’t really broken in too nicely yet, so she decided to switch to her old glove before the game. Brombacher used her trusty old friend to snag a hard-hit grounder up the middle backhanded to lead off the fifth and final inning.

“This was the first game I used my old glove, and I’m kind of glad I used my old glove today,” she said. “With my new glove, I wouldn’t have caught that.”

Brombacher’s five-strikeout, 40-pitch performance lowered her ERA to 1.79 and brought her record to 17-3 on the season. The perfect game was the fourth in Florida’s history and the first since current assistant coach Jenny Gladding tossed one on February 7, 2004.

The performance was a huge turnaround from Brombacher’s first appearance against the Bulls this season, when she allowed 11 hits and eight earned runs with five walks in the Gators’ 12-8 victory during the USF-Wilson DeMarini Tournament in Clearwater on Feb. 14.

Brombacher’s perfect game was eased along by a dominant offensive performance. With eight days since the Gators’ last game—their series against Baylor last weekend was canceled due to inclement weather—the offense didn’t show a glimpse of rust on its bats, only anxiousness to put eight days’ worth of runs on the board.

Enea got the show started for the Gators with a two-run line drive homer in the top of the first that didn’t seem to get more than 10 feet off the ground before going out. Enea followed that up with a towering solo shot to centerfield in the next inning. It was the second time Enea has hit two home runs in a game this season and the sixth time a Gator accomplished the feat.

After a few un-Enea like performances last week, going 0-for-10, the week-long wait for her chance at redemption was almost more than she could take. It was certainly worth the wait.

“It definitely feels good,” Enea said. “I’m very hard on myself and I’m still not satisfied, so I would rather it continue throughout the SEC. I try to be perfect and when I’m not, I might consider myself psycho, especially with that long week. I just wanted to kill myself.”

Junior Megan Bush added a moon shot of her own sent down the left-field line in the bottom of the first to cap off a five-run inning that all but assured victory. Bush also added a sacrifice fly RBI in the bottom of the fourth.

Bush has been on a tear of late, extending her hitting streak to eight games. It’s been almost three weeks since her last hitless performance. Bush said she started taking a more open stance in the batter’s box, which has allowed her to see the ball with both eyes as it leaves the pitcher’s hand. But a less scientific secret to her success may lie in the depths of her brother-in-law’s growing beard.

“My brother-in-law hasn’t shaved since California,” Bush said. “It’s the kind of thing that if my batting average stays up, he’s going to keep it. I think there’s a little bit of a family thing going on there.”

The beard’s magic is working so well that even her sister is willing to take one for the team.

“She doesn’t care,” Bush said. “She texted me before the game and said, ‘Keep the beard up. I don’t care what he looks like.’ She doesn’t care how long it gets. She just wants me to keep up my batting average.”

Junior Aja Paculba also notched a four-bagger for the Gators, a solo shot in the bottom of the second. Junior Tiffany DeFelice added two RBI off a sacrifice fly and a single. Sophomore Michelle Moultrie went 2-for-3 and freshman Brittany Walker mixed in an RBI single for the Gators.

After eight days off, the tune-up is especially critical for the Gators, who take to the road this weekend for a showdown with the Crimson Tide in what figures to be one of the most-anticipated matchups of the season. The teams will play a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m. on Saturday (scheduled for ESPN2), followed by the series finale at 2:30 p.m. (ESPNU).