TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – There’s a reason why Florida’s freshman baseball class was considered the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation, and Friday night the fourth-ranked Gators showed why. Hudson Randall pitched seven shutout innings and fellow freshmen Nolan Fontana, Austin Maddox and Mike Zunino provided most of the offense as Florida opened a three-game series at Alabama with a 9-3 victory, its sixth straight, before 4,387 fans at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
The right-handed Randall (6-3, 2.94 ERA) scattered eight hits over seven innings of work, allowing one double and one walk while striking out three. In 64.1 innings, Randall has surrendered 66 hits and 21 earned runs with a strikeout-walk ratio of 44-16, and the victory was his fourth straight.
The Gators built a 7-0 lead behind Hudson and led 9-0 heading into the bottom of the ninth when the Crimson Tide scored three times. Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan used four relievers to get the final three outs of the game, which the last of the relievers, Kevin Chapman, did with three strikeouts.
Freshman shortstop/leadoff hitter Fontana went 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles, while Zunino drove in three runs in a 2-for-4 performance at the plate. Preston Tucker, Matt den Dekker and Maddox each had two hits, with Maddox hitting his team-leading 14th home run and running his team-leading RBI total to 52.
And despite three errors, two in Alabama’s three-run ninth, Florida was strong defensively, turning a season-high four double plays.
Florida (32-11, 16-6 SEC) remained a game behind South Carolina in the Eastern Division race with the victory over Alabama (28-18, 9-13 SEC West). The Gamecocks earned a 13-9 victory Friday night at Kentucky. In other SEC finals Friday, Tennessee beat Georgia, 4-1; Auburn beat Mississippi State, 9-6; Arkansas beat Mississippi, 11-4, and Louisiana State beat Vanderbilt in a 10-inning slugfest at Baton Rouge, La., 16-15.
The Gators jumped on losing pitcher Adam Morgan (5-2, 6.23 ERA) with two runs in the top of the fifth and added another run in the second before knocking Morgan out during a three-run fifth inning that made it 6-0. Morgan surrendered six runs (all earned) on 10 hits and one walk.
Fontana got things started in the first inning when he belted Morgan’s 3-2 offering to left field for a double. With two outs, Maddox singled off Morgan’s arm to drive in Fontana. Daniel Pigott ran his hitting streak to 12 games with a single and den Dekker then singled to left center to drive home Maddox for a 2-0 lead.
After Randall worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the first, the Gators made it 3-0 in the top of the second when Jonathan Pigott and Zunino had back-to-back singles to lead off the inning. Pigott scored from third on Fontana’s double-play grounder to short.
With one out in the fifth inning, Maddox hit a 2-2 pitch from Morgan out in left for his 14th home run and a 4-0 lead. Daniel Pigott followed with a walk and den Dekker bunted his way on, ending Morgan’s evening. With Jason Townsend on the mound, Florida pulled off a double steal, Pigott taking third and den Dekker taking second. With two out, Jonathan Pigott walked to load the bases and Zunino followed with a two-run single to right for a 6-0 lead.
Florida made it 7-0 in the top of the seventh when Josh Adams had a leadoff double. Jonathan Pigott then sacrificed him to third and Zunino hit a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Adams.
In the ninth, Fontana’s second double of the game drove in Jonathan Pigott and pinch-hitter Ben McMahan drove Fontana home with a single for a 9-0 lead.
In the bottom of the ninth, Andrew Miller greeted reliever Greg Larson with a solo home run. O’Sullivan then brought in Michael Heller, who surrendered a pinch-hit single to Cody Trotter. Heller then hit pinch-hitter Brett Booth with a pitch and was relieved by Steven Rodriguez. Taylor Dugas singled to center and Trotter scored on an error by den Dekker. Jon Kelton then reached on an error by Adams at third.
O’Sullivan then brought in Chapman, who struck out Josh Rutledge before hitting Clay Jones with a pitch to bring in the third run. Chapman then got David Kindred and pinch-hitter Brandt Hendricks swinging to end the game.
Sophomore left-hander Alex Panteliodis (7-2, 2.92 ERA) starts Saturday’s game for the Gators against junior right-hander Jimmy Nelson (5-1, 3.90 ERA). The game will be televised on Sun Sports beginning at 4 p.m. The series wraps up on Sunday with a single game at 3 p.m.
SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
Eastern Division Conference Overall
(Rank) Team W-L Pct. GB W-L Pct.
(6) South Carolina 17-5 .773 — 36-9 .800
(5) Florida 16-6 .727 1 32-11 .744
(23) Vanderbilt 10-10 .500 6 33-13 .717
Tennessee 9-13 .409 8 25-21 .543
Kentucky 7-15 .318 10 24-21 .533
Georgia 3-17 .150 13 13-31 .295
Western Division Conference Overall
(Rank) Team W-L Pct. GB W-L Pct.
(12) Arkansas 15-7 .682 — 36-10 .783
(14) Mississippi 14-8 .636 1 33-14 .702
(23) Auburn 13-9 .591 2 31-15 .674
(20) Louisiana State 12-10 .545 3 34-13 .723
Alabama 9-13 .409 6 28-18 .609
Mississippi State 5-17 .227 10 20-26 .435
(Rank) Ranking in the GatorCountry.com Top 30
RESULTS
FRIDAY / May 7
Florida 9, Alabama 3
Arkansas 11, Mississippi 4
South Carolina 13, Kentucky 9
Louisiana State 16, Vanderbilt 15 (10 innings)
Auburn 9, Mississippi State 6
Tennessee 4, Georgia 1
SCHEDULE
SATURDAY / May 8
Florida (So. LHP Alex Panteliodis 7-2, 2.92 ERA) at Alabama (Jr. RHP Jimmy Nelson 5-1, 3.90 ERA), 4:05 p.m. (SUN)
Tennessee (So. LHP Steven Gruver 3-3, 5.72 ERA) at Georgia (Sr. RHP Jeff Walters 1-5, 8.08 ERA), 1 p.m.
Mississippi State (Fr. RHP Chris Stratton 4-3, 5.64 ERA) at Auburn (TBA), 4 p.m.
South Carolina (Jr. RHP Sam Dyson 4-3, 4.58 ERA) at Kentucky (Fr. RHP Jordan Cooper 2-4, 5.70 ERA), 7 p.m.
Vanderbilt (So. RHP Jack Armstrong 5-1, 3.83 ERA) at Louisiana State (Jr. RHP Austin Ross 3-4, 5.63 ERA), 7 p.m. (CSS)
Arkansas (Fr. RHP D.J. Baxebdale 0-0, 3.79 ERA) at Mississippi (Sr. RHP Aaron Barrett 6-2, 3.72 ERA), 8 p.m. (ESPNU)
SUNDAY / May 9
Florida (Fr. LHP Brian Johnson 4-2, 2.90 ERA) at Alabama (TBA), 3:05 p.m.
South Carolina (Sr. RHP Jay Brown 2-0, 4.72 ERA) at Kentucky (So. RHP Alex Meyer 4-2, 7.30 ERA), 1 p.m.
Tennessee (TBA) at Georgia (Sr. LHP Alex McRee 0-1, 6.33 ERA), 2 p.m. (CSS)
Vanderbilt (Jr. RHP Taylor Hill 4-3, 3.38 ERA) at Louisiana State (Jr. RHP Austin Ross 3-4, 5.63 ERA), 2 p.m.
Mississippi State (TBA) at Auburn (Jr. LHP Grant Dayton 5-2, 4.86 ERA), 2 p.m.
Arkansas (TBA) at Mississippi (TBA), 2:30 p.m.
RANKINGS
GATOR COUNTRY.com TOP 30
The Gator Country.com Top 30 is determined by combining four polls of USA Today / ESPN Coaches, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association:
Rk School Rcd Pts Prv Friday/Next game
1. Texas (3) (39-8) 119 1 L, 2-1 No. 25 Kansas State; 5/8-9 at No. 25 Kansas State
2. Virginia (1) (40-9) 115 3 Did not play; 5/14 vs. North Carolina
3. Arizona State (39-5) 114 2 Did not play; 5/10 vs. Brigham Young
4. Coastal Carolina (39-6) 103 5 Did not play; 5/8-10 Winthrop
5. Florida (32-11) 102 10 W, 9-3 at Alabama; 5/8-9 at Alabama
6. South Carolina (36-9) 96 8 W, 13-9 at Kentucky; 5/8-9 at Kentucky
7. Florida State (34-12) 94 9 L, 10-7 at Boston College; 5/8-9 at Boston College
8. Texas Christian (35-9) 93 11 W, 3-2 at New Mexico; 5/8-9 at New Mexico
9. Georgia Tech (37-9) 86 4 W, 8-4 Illinois-Chicago; 5/8-9 Illinois-Chicago
10. Louisville (39-7) 85 12 W, 5-0 at Georgetown; 5/8-9 at Georgetown
11. Miami, Fla. (35-11) 79 14 W, 6-0 Barry; 5/8 Barry
12. Arkansas (36-10) 76 7 W, 11-4 at No. 14 Mississippi; 5/8-9 at No. 14 Mississippi
13. UCLA (32-10) 72 6 W, 7-2 at Washington; 5/8-9 at Washington
14. Mississippi (33-14) 71 16 L, 11-4 to No. 12 Arkansas; 5/8-9 No. 12 Arkansas
15. Cal State Fullerton (28-14) 70 15 W, 6-4 UC Riverside; 5/8-9 UC Riverside
16. Oklahoma (34-12) 58 17 W, 7-6 Oklahoma State; 5/8-9 vs. Oklahoma State
17. Oregon (30-16) 50 22 L, 2-1 at Oregon State; 5/8-9 at Oregon State
18. Virginia Tech (32-15) 46 23 Did not play; 5/8-9 Savannah State
19. Connecticut (35-9) 44 18 Did not play; 5/8-9 Cincinnati
20. Louisiana State (34-13) 37 13 W, 16-15 (10) vs. No. 23 Vanderbilt; 5/8-9 vs. No. 23 Vanderbilt
21. Arizona (29-15) 33 19 L, 7-2 vs. Cal State Bakersfield; 5/8-9 Cal State Bakersfield
22. California (27-15) 30 25 Did not play; 5/8-10 at Washington State
23. Vanderbilt (33-13) 25 21 L, 15-16 (10) at No. 20 Louisiana State; 5/8-9 at No. 20 Louisiana State
23. Auburn (31-15) 25 NR W, 9-6 Mississippi State; 5/8-9 Mississippi State
25. Kansas State (32-13) 20 24 W, 2-1 vs. No. 1 Texas; 5/8-9 vs. No. 1 Texas
26. Rice (29-16) 19 27 W, 20-4 at Marshall; 5/8-9 at Marshall
26. San Diego (28-16) 19 28 W, 2-0 at Portland; 5/8-9 at Portland
28. Clemson (29-17) 16 26 W, 18-6 at Maryland; 5/8-9 at Maryland
29. UC Irvine (28-15) 11 NR W, 3-1 at Cal Poly; 5/8-9 at Cal Poly
29. Pittsburgh (33-11) 11 29 W, 5-2 at Seton Hall; 5/8 at Seton Hall
Others: Portland (30-9) 9, North Carolina (27-17) 7, New Mexico State (35-12) 7, Texas State (28-14) 2, Stanford (21-17) 1.
USA TODAY/ESPN COACHES
1. Texas (38-7); 2. Arizona State (38-5); 3. Virginia (39-9); 4. Coastal Carolina (39-6); 5. Georgia Tech (36-9); 6. Florida (31-11); 7. South Carolina (34-9); 8. Texas Christian (34-9); 9. Florida State (33-11); 10. Arkansas (35-10); 11. Louisville (36-7); 12. UCLA (30-10); 13. Miami, Fla. (34-11); 14. Mississippi (33-13); 15. Louisiana State (32-13); 16. Cal State Fullerton (27-14); 17. Oklahoma (32-12); 18. Vanderbilt (33-12); 19. Oregon (30-14); 20. Kansas State (30-12); 21. Connecticut (35-9); 22. Arizona (29-13); 23. Virginia Tech (32-14); 24. Clemson (27-17); 25. Rice (26-16).
BASEBALL AMERICA
1. Virginia (39-9); 2. Texas (38-7); 3. Arizona State (38-5); 4. Florida (31-11); 5. Florida State (33-11); 6. South Carolina (34-9); 7. Coastal Carolina (39-6); 8. Texas Christian (34-9); 9. Louisville (36-7); 10. Cal State Fullerton (27-14); 11. Mississippi (33-13); 12. UCLA (30-10); 13. Miami, Fla. (34-11); 14. Arkansas (35-10); 15. Oregon (30-14); 16. Virginia Tech (32-14); 17. Georgia Tech (36-9); 18. Oklahoma (32-13); 19. Auburn (21-17); 20. Connecticut (35-9); 21. California (26-15); 22. San Diego (26-16); 23. Arizona (29-13); 24. Louisiana State (32-13); 25. Rice (26-16).
COLLEGIATE BASEBALL
1. Texas (38-7); 2. Arizona State (38-5); 3. Virginia (39-9); 4. South Carolina (34-9); 5. Coastal Carolina (39-6); 6. Florida (31-11); 7. Miami, Fla. (34-11); 8. Florida State (33-11); 9. Georgia Tech (36-9); 10. Louisville (36-7); 11. Texas Christian (34-9); 12. Cal State Fullerton (27-14); 13. Mississippi (33-13); 14. Arkansas (35-10); 15. UCLA (30-10); 16. Connecticut (35-9); 17. Oklahoma (32-12); 18. California (26-15); 19. Oregon (30-14); 20. Pittsburgh (31-11); 21. Virginia Tech (32-14); 22. Portland (30-9); 23. San Diego (26-16); 24. Auburn (30-15); 25. New Mexico State (35-12-1); 26. Arizona (29-13); 27. Kansas State (30-12); 28. Rice (26-16); 29. Texas State (28-14); 30. UC Irvine (27-14).
NATIONAL COLLEGE BASEBALL WRITERS ASSOCIATION
1. Texas (38-7); 2. Virginia (39-9); 3. Arizona State (38-5); 4. Texas Christian (34-9); 5. Coastal Carolina (39-6); 6. Florida (31-11); 7. Georgia Tech (36-9); 8. Florida State (33-11); 9. Louisville (36-7); 10. Arkansas (35-10); 11. South Carolina (34-9); 12. Miami, Fla. (34-11); 13. UCLA (30-10); 14. Oklahoma (32-12); 15. Mississippi (33-13); 16. Cal State Fullerton (27-14); 17. Louisiana State (32-13); 18. Virginia Tech (32-14); 19. Vanderbilt (33-12); 20. Arizona (29-13); 21. Oregon (30-14); 22. Clemson (27-17); 23. Connecticut (35-9); 24. North Carolina (27-17); 25. UC Irvine (27-14); 26. Kansas State (30-12); 27. Rice (26-16); 28. Auburn (30-15); 29. California (26-15); 30. Stanford (21-17).