No.3 Florida dropped their first weekend series of the season after falling 5-2 to No.6 South Carolina on Friday night. The loss snapped a 13-series win streak dating back to April of 2022 and marks the first time Florida has lost back-to-back games in 2023.
Jac Caglianone kicked off the game with a solo shot to right field, the 23rd of the season for the Nations home run leader.
The Gamecocks would immediately answer with five runs in the first two innings off of two home runs off the bat of Ethan Petry and Cole Messina.
Florida’s starter Hurston Waldrep did an outstanding job of settling job after a rough start, retiring 10 Gamecock batters in a row. Waldrep completed six innings, allowing five runs, six hits, and three walks while striking out ten. Waldrep struck out double-digit batters for the fourth time this season.
“I think he was trying to get to his off speed, he just had a little trouble commanding it,” Head Coach Kevin O’Sullivan said during the postgame press conference. “Once he started landing his curveball and started getting his split going, he did a real nice job for us.”
A few mistakes from Waldrep costed him five runs against a dangerous South Carolina team that leads the country in home runs. Waldrep’s line may not jump out at you, but he gave Florida’s offense a chance to win the game after a shaky start.
“They had a plan to jump Hurston’s fastball and they did a good job with that. A two-run homer, or three-run homer, I think there,” O’Sullivan said. “He settled in and did a really nice job. Kept it together, threw four scoreless and gave us a chance.”
The storyline of the game was Florida’s missed opportunities at the plate. The Gators left nine men on base throughout the contest, failing to come up with the big-time over and over again.
“We had an opportunity there in the fourth to score with a runner on third and less than two outs, got the popup,” O’Sullivan said. “Next inning, BT grounded into the double play. You don’t get many opportunities (like that). Their pitchers throw strikes. They did a good job when they needed to in key situations in the game. I think we left nine on base. At the end of the day, last night was the bullpen. Tonight, offensively, we had some opportunities. We just got beat. It was a good baseball game. We just got beat.”
Florida out hit South Carolina 8-6 in the ballgame.
Kevin O’Sullivan credits South Carolina’s pitching staff for the way they’ve handled the Gators so far this series.
“The bottom line is they pitched really good,” O’Sullivan said. “They don’t give you a whole lot, so when you have your opportunities to score runs with a runner on third and less than two outs, you gotta cash in. Not to say that would have made a difference in the game, because they did make big pitches when they needed to. We’re just going to have to come out tomorrow, put it all together and come out of here with a win.”
The Gators look to avoid the series sweep Saturday at 2:00 PM. I can’t stress how important winning one game on the road against the No.6 team in the country is for this Florida team. Avoiding sweeps goes a long way in the eyes of the National rankings at the end of the season, especially against a South Carolina team that’s likely to move up in the polls.