The Florida Gators came from behind in game one of the Clemson Super Regional, defeating the Tigers 10-7 behind a monstrous seven-run 5th inning and four innings of scoreless relief from junior Brandon Neely to close out the game.
Florida totaled 10 hits including home runs from Tyler Shelnut, Jac Caglianone, and Luke Heyman. The Gators hit .375 (3-8) with runners in scoring position while Clemson was hitless in that department (0-8).
“Like anything else, it will come down to a pitch here, an at bat here, and whoever has the opportunity to rise in those certain situations is probably going to end up being the winner,” head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said before the series.
Florida certainly rose to the occasion in game one and are now one win away from the program’s 14th College World Series appearance.
Liam Peterson struggles
True freshman Liam Peterson got the start for Florida on Saturday afternoon but struggled big time in a tough environment. Clemson found two early runs behind four first inning walks and one hit. It looked as if the right hander was flustered by the atmosphere inside Doug Kingsmore Stadium, which consisted of a sold-out crowd and loud music in the middle of nearly every pitch.
On 41 first inning pitches, Peterson threw just 18 for strikes including multiple wild pitches, one that allowed the first run of the game to score.
After walking in the second run of inning, Peterson stranded the bases loaded with a critical strikeout of designated hitter Jacob Jarrell.
The start of the 2nd inning was not any better for the young right hander, who allowed a leadoff triple to score on another wild pitch.
Peterson tossed 1.0 + innings, allowing three runs on three hits and four walks before RHP Fisher Jameson took over.
“Wasn’t quite the start we had hoped, falling behind three runs after the first couple innings. Felt like we were playing on our heels,” O’Sullivan said postgame.
Massive 5th inning
After scoring one run in the third and fourth inning, Florida exploded in the 5th, sending 11 batters to the plate, scoring seven runs on four hits and three walks.
Trailing 4-2, Jac Caglianone launched an opposite three-run home run with nobody out in the inning, flipping momentum back to the Gators.
“He floated the slider in there first pitch, cranked one down the line the first AB, I knew he wasn’t going to throw it again, he’s been throwing his heater a lot this outing, so I was just on time and ready for it,” Caglianone said on his home run.
“We were chasing runs in the first part of the ball game and I think the three-run home run kind of loosened us up a little bit,” O’Sullivan said postgame.
Florida would go on to tack on four more runs in the 5th, highlighted by a textbook safety squeeze from Brody Donay with a runner on 3rd and one out.
Brandon Neely’s 12 out save
In trouble in the 6th inning, Kevin O’Sullivan made the move to his All-American closer in Brandon Neely. This was familiar territory for the junior, who fired the 5.2 scoreless innings of relief in his last outing against Oklahoma State to close the game.
The story was the same. Neely tossed 4.0 innings of scoreless relief vs Clemson, allowing just one hit while striking out seven, placing a stamp on game one.
“You can go to him at any point,” O’Sullivan said on Neely. “It wasn’t ideal bringing him in the 6th, I was hoping we could get three more outs and use him for 7th, 8th, and 9th. Just like last weekend vs Oklahoma State, we felt like this was the turning point of the game.”
In his last two postseason appearances, Neely has combined for 9.2 innings of scoreless relief while striking out 18 batters.
“Obviously Brandon for the second week in a row was just incredible,” O’Sullivan added.
Jac Caglianone will take the mound for the Gators in game two, which is scheduled for Sunday at 2:30 PM.