The top-ranked Florida Gators go for a sweep of Florida’s college softball teams Wednesday when Central Florida visits the Katie Seashole Pressly Softball Stadium Wednesday night at 6 p.m.
Last season, UCF handed Florida its only in-state loss in the past 2½ years, a 1-0, eight-inning setback in the NCAA regional. The Gators came back the next game to win 10-0 and advance to the NCAA super regionals.
This year, the Gators, 42-3 overall, are 7-0 in the state and have won by a margin of 53-6 against Jacksonville, Florida Atlantic, South Florida, Florida International and Florida State. UCF comes in 21-22.
Coach Tim Walton’s team is coming off back-to-back Saturday shutouts at Kentucky. After being rained out on Friday, the Gators struggled in the first game before winning 1-0. Losing pitcher Rachel Riley threw a one-hitter in nine innings against the potent Florida lineup, but she wasn’t able to outduel senior Stacey Nelson (25-3), who currently leads the nation in earned-run average at 0.45. Sophomore Stephanie Brombacher (17-0, 0.96 ERA) bounced back from battling the flu for two weeks with a dominating three-hit, 6-0 shutout in the nightcap.
The UCF pitching staff has performed well of late, leading the Golden Knights to a six-game winning streak before Saturday’s loss to Conference USA foe Marshall. Junior right-hander Kristina DeMello (6-7, 2.86 ERA) threw her first career no-hitter in Friday’s 3-0 victory over Marshall. Junior right-hander Ashleigh Cole (13-6, 2.64 ERA) and senior right-hander Magon Paul (2-7, 3.69 ERA) may also make appearances for UCF.
But the defense is the Golden Knights’ Achilles heel. The left side of the infield, sophomore shortstop Tiffany Lane and junior third baseman Ashley Barrow, has combined for 29 errors, more than the entire Gators roster. As a team, the Golden Knights have committed 60 errors.
Lane (.352, 4 HR, 22 RBI) is tied for the NCAA lead in triples with eight. Sophomore catcher Abby McClain (.355, 4 HR, 21 RBI) and senior first baseman Breanne Javier (.360, 2 HR, 30 RBI) carry the offensive load for UCF, which has only 17 home runs this season.
The game will be a homecoming of sorts for freshman second baseman Natalie Land (.250, 2 HR, 10 RBI), who played at Lafayette High School in Mayo. Land, a Gainesville native, was a four-time Player of the Year while compiling a .555 career batting average. Land’s uncle is former Florida quarterback and current Jacksonville University quarterback Kerwin Bell.
Junior Francesca Enea (.352, 14 HR, 53 RBI) will lead the Gators at the plate as they look to continue their eight-game winning streak. Enea has hit three home runs in the past three games, including the walk-off home run last Wednesday that beat Florida State, passing Lindsey Cameron on Florida’s all-time home run list with 37.
After Wednesday’s game, the Gators will travel west to take on No. 18 Louisiana State in a three-game series beginning with a Saturday doubleheader at 2 p.m. The series finale is Sunday. The Gators then return to Gainesville for their final two series of the regular season: April 25-26 against Arkansas and May 2-3 against Longwood.