Bring out the brooms, the Gators got the sweep! Florida defeated Cincinnati 13-7 in the third and final game of the weekend series thanks to eight Gator home runs, breaking the program record for most home runs in a single game.
Florida’s offense was all Josh Rivera early on, who blasted his second home run of the series directly off the batter’s eye in the 2nd inning. The ball carried 445 feet with an exit velo of 109 MPH. That wasn’t it for Rivera as he delivered a two-RBI oppo-taco 340 feet over the right field fence in the 4th inning for his second home run of the game and third of the series. Rivera collected his first career multi home run game, finishing 3-for-4 with four RBIs and three runs scored.
Things got a little shaky for Jac Caglianone early on in his second start on the mound, but he was able to hold the Bearcats to just one run after getting out of a bases-loaded one out jam.
Caglianone settled in after the eventful first, blanking the Bearcats from the second through the fourth while collecting six strikeouts. The southpaw ran into some trouble in the fifth, as Blake Purnell took over with two outs and the bags loaded.
Purnell hit Guidry and walked Vidourek in his only two batters faced, allowing two runs credited to Caglianone to cross home plate.
Left-hander Cade Fisher would come in for Purnell and get the Gators out of the inning before any more damage was done.
Caglianone finished with a line of 4.2 IP, three runs, two hits, four walks, one HBP, and six strikeouts.
Thankfully for Florida, the two-way player stayed in the game to DH for the Gators. Caglianone would connect on three home runs in Florida’s remaining four innings at the plate, holding an average distance of 428 feet and an average exit velo of 114 MPH.
The Gators had two players (Rivera, Caglianone) post multi-homer games in the same contest for the first time since JJ Schwarz (four) and Dalton Guthrie (two) accomplished the feat vs. Stetson on April 7, 2015.
Freshman Cade Fisher would complete 1.2 innings of work, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out two.
Florida’s closer, Brandon Neely, would come in to finish off the game, throwing 2.2 innings and allowing two runs on two hits while striking out three Bearcat batters. Neely’s stat line doesn’t jump out at you because of the two-run home run he gave up, but he pitched really well, pounding the strike zone and working quickly.
Cincinnati brought their bats to the plate today, scoring seven runs on nine hits in the contest. The Bearcats were aggressive and it paid off for them, creating a ton of hard-hit balls through nine innings at the dish.
Luke Heyman and Colby Halter delivered back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, extending Florida’s lead to 7-4.
Cade Kurland continues his impressive freshman campaign, cranking the 3rd home run of his career in the contest, finishing 2-5 at the dish.
Florida’s eight home runs totaled 3,278 feet.
The Gators will take on Jacksonville in a two-game home and home midweek set before hosting Miami for their third weekend series of 2023.