Special report on the Florida Gators softball team:
TAMPA – The No.4-ranked Florida softball team trounced Boston College, 9-0 (5 innings) and Illinois State, 21-0 (5 innings), in a pair of run-rule shutout victories Saturday afternoon at the USF-Rawlings Invitational.
The Gators (3-0) offense hit .404 (19-for-47) with five extra base hits that also featured a pair of grand slams in the second game against the Redbirds (1-3) by sophomore Reagan Walsh and freshman Olivia Gigante.
It’s the first time since Feb. 22, 2015 that two grand slams have been hit in a single game by UF. Brianna Little and Janell Wheaton both blasted shots against Mercer in the 2nd and 5th innings of play.
In the first game against the Eagles (3-1), Florida scored all nine runs in the first two innings of action. The Orange and Blue plated five in the opening frame as Charla Echols drove in the first two with shot to left field, while Walsh pushed across one run in the following at-bat and Avery Goelz extended the lead out to 5-0 on a two-RBI double.
The Gators struck for four more runs in the following frame to push the lead out to 9-0 over Boston College. Sophomore Sam Roe continued her hot streak at the plate with a two-RBI single to left field, which later paired with Sarah Longley’s two-RBI base hit.
In the circle, graduate senior Elizabeth Hightower (1-0) saw her first action of the 2023 season and hurled a complete-game one-hit shutout. The complete-game effort was the fourth one-hitter of the veteran’s career.
Florida’s offense continued to press forward in the second game against Illinois State. Walsh kickstarted the seven-run rally with her the second grand slam of her career in the 1st inning play, while Kendra Falby extended the rally with a two-RBI single up the middle and Baylee Goddard singled to center field to cap the scoring.
The Redbirds held the Gators scoreless in the second inning, but the offense plated two runs in the 3rd inning and 4th inning to go up 11-0. Walsh notched her second home run of the game in the 3rd inning with a two-run shot to left field and Pollard drove in a pair in the 4th inning.
In the 5th inning of action, Florida produced a season-high 10-run frame to push the lead out to 21-0. Redshirt-sophomore Christina Wellen scored the first run of the inning on a wild pitch, while Roe scored on a passed ball and Kinsey Goelz plated sister Avery Goelz on a SAC fly to left field.
The scoring continued via redshirt-junior Skylar Wallace’s RBI single through the right side and Wellen’s two-RBI single up the middle. Gigante’s grand slam capped off the scoring effort for the day.
In the circle against the Red Birds, Rylee Trlicek (2-0) picked up her second win of the season with 4 innings of work, while Gigante closed out the game in the final inning of action.
The Gators scheduled game against USF to close out the USF-Rawlings Invitational has been postponed to April 19, where the two teams will play a doubleheader in Gainesville at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
Notables:
* The Gators have scored a total of 41 runs through the first three games (15 innings) of the season, which are the most runs scored in the first three games of a season. In 2011, the Orange and Blue scored 32 runs throughout the first three games of the year.
* UF’s 21-0 win over Illinois State is tied for the second-largest margin of victory in program history. The school record was a 22-0 win over Ball State in 2010.
* Reagan Walsh belted her second career grand slam in the top of the 1st inning against Illinois State.
* It’s also the first grand slam for the Gators since Walsh hit her first career one against Jacksonville Feb. 15, 2022.
* Walsh followed up with a two-run home run in the top of the 3rd inning for her first career multi-home run game.
* It’s also the first multi-home run game by a Gators since Hannah Adams hit two against James Madison Feb. 27, 2022.
* Olivia Gigante also hit a grand slam in the win over Illinois State which also served as the first hit of her career.
* The two grand slams by Walsh and Gigante make it the first time since Mercer in 2015 that two have been hit in a single game.
* Gigante is first Gators freshman to hit a home run and pitch in the same game since Lauren Haeger in 2012-the only other freshman to do both in a game since Tim Walton arrived. First Gator in any class to do so since Aleshia Ocasio. Note courtesy of D1Softball’s Graham Hays
* Elizabeth Hightower hurled a complete-game one-hit shutout against Boston College, which was the fourth such feat of her career.
* Feb. 15, 2020 – vs. Longwood
* Feb. 21, 2021 – vs. Georgia Southern
* March 5, 2021 – vs. No. 16 Florida State
* Feb. 11, 2023 – vs. Boston College.
* Overall, it’s the 83rd complete-game one-hitter by a Florida pitcher and the first since March 6, 2022 when Lexie Delbrey one-hit Georgia State.
* In addition to Gigante’s first career hit, both freshman Kaila Pollard and redshirt-sophomore Christina Wellen notched the first hits of their career.
* Pollard stroked a two-RBI double to center field, while Wellen drove a two-RBI single up the middle of the Redbirds infield.