Special report on the Florida Gators softball team:
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – No. 6 Florida won in walk-off fashion Wednesday night at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium as senior Hannah Adams lifted the team to a 1-0 victory over Jacksonville with her heroics in the 7thinning.
The Gators (3-0) were locked into a pitcher’s duel with the Dolphins (2-1) and the game remained scoreless until Adams’ game-winning RBI double off the left center field wall that scored Cheyenne Lindsey from first base.
To set the stage, Lindsey led off the inning with a perfectly executed bunt on the first pitch offered from the Dolphins ace pitcher.
In the circle, Elizabeth Hightower and Katie Chronister (2-0) battled with Alyssa Bilodeau (2-1) for the entirety of the game. However, it was Hightower and Chronister who prevailed as they held the Dolphins to just three hits, while Bilodeau gave up nine to the Gators.
Hightower turned in 4.1 quality innings worth of work and limited Jacksonville to just two hits, while striking out four and issuing only one walk.
Chronister, who entered in the top of the 5th inning with one runner in scoring position, closed out the remainder of the game by allowing only one hit over the final 2.1 innings.
Offensively, the Gators pounded out nine hits with Charla Echols (2-for-3) and Adams (2-for-4) turning in multi-hit games for the third straight contest. Echols, who is now 8-for-9 on the season, was retired for the first time all year and Adams’ walk-off was her first of the year, but last season she contributed three walk-off hits to lead the team.
Kendyl Lindaman (1-for-2), Jaimie Hoover (1-for-3), Baylee Goddard (1-for-3), Avery Goelz (1-for-2) and Lindsey (1-for-3) each contributed a hit in the effort.
Notable Notes
- Florida improved 23-0 all-time over Jacksonville and 13-0 when playing at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
- The last time the Gators won on a walk-off was March 7, 2020 against Auburn when the Gators won 2-1 in the 11th inning on Hannah Adams walk-off single to left field that scored Cheyenne Lindsey.
- Charla Echols continued to stay hot at the plate and is now 8-for-9 on the season, which is the best start offensively by a Gator through three games played.
- Hannah Adams turned in her first walk-off hit of the season after she had three during the shortened 2020 campaign.
- Katie Chronister extended her scoreless inning streak out to 9.1 innings, which is the second longest of her career dating back to the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
- Elizabeth Hightower also extended her scoreless inning streak to 9.0 innings, which is just 2.1 innings shy of her career long of 11.2 innings she set in 2019.