On a day when the third-ranked Florida Gators softball team had plenty of big hits to go around, sophomore Michelle Moultrie was the sparkplug that got everything going in a pair of victories over Northwestern State at Katie Seashole Pressly Softball Stadium.
In the first game of the doubleheader, coach Tim Walton’s Gators (11-1) defeated the Demons 15-0 in five innings off the strength of an 11-run third inning, keyed by a Moultrie two-run triple. The Gators were lifted by Moultrie’s tiebreaking three-run home run in a 5-0 victory over the Demons in the second game. The teams will play the last game of the series Sunday at noon.
In the first game, Walton went with a double steal to get the Gators on the board, but he was able to watch Florida’s bats scorch the ball the rest of the way. Senior Francesca Enea stepped up to the plate next and hit a towering shot over the left field wall that looked as if it was hit straight in the air.
Freshman Brittany Schutte truly got the party started two innings later with a two-run home run that started the epic third inning. Junior Kelsey Bruder followed with a two-run shot of her own two batters later. The next two Florida hitters walked before the Demons were able to retire the first batter of the inning.
That’s when Moultrie stepped up to the plate and lined a ball in the gap for a triple to bring home two more runs. With all of the hits going around, it would be hard to point to one that was more important than the other, but it was the one that stood out in Walton’s mind at the end of the day.
“Michelle sparked that inning with a triple,” Walton said. “In my opinion, all the hits were big. But that was just a big, big hit that kind of put the game out of reach.”
The Gators continued to pound the Demon pitchers before Bruder stepped up to the plate again and knocked out her second homer. The inning took so long that Walton had to think for a few seconds before remembering whether she had two deep balls in the inning. But it didn’t take too long to recall Bruder’s line drive shot over the right field fence that made her the first Gator to hit two home runs in the same inning since junior Megan Bush did it against Arizona State last year. Bruder also joined Tiffany DeFelice and Bush as Gators who have hit two home runs in the same game this season.
“I was just seeing good pitches,” Bruder said with a smile on her face. “I was seeing it early, which helped a lot. I mean … she hung ‘em.”
By the time the inning came to an end, Florida had sent 15 batters to the plate and effectively went on cruise control the rest of the way as Walton emptied his bench. It was an inning that showed just how devastating this Florida lineup can be if it is in synch.
“[Walton] says hits are contagious,” Bruder said. “And I completely believe it because how many runs was that? Eleven? I mean, we just feed off each other and there was a lot of good talk about seeing pitches and seeing spins and communicating that. That’s really important for us.”
The Gators stayed in cruise control heading into the second game, which took them a few innings to get going. After such a dominating performance, Florida was only able to muster one hit in the first three innings, but it was only a matter of time before the bats broke out once again.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Bruder and senior Corrie Brooks started to get things going with singles, but it took a clutch three-run homer to center by Moultrie to break the tie and give the Gators a comfortable lead and get the bats back in check.
“It was huge,” Bruder said. “That opened it up completely. It was a clutch situation, and it really got everything going.”
Moultrie has proven to be what Walton called a “deadly weapon” for the Gators in the early part of the season. She is, of course, a menace on the bases with her lightning-quick feet, but Moultrie’s power this season is what makes her truly dangerous. She already has three home runs, already besting her total of two all of last season. Moultrie deflected all praise and gave credit to her teammates after the game.
“I just feel more relaxed at the plate,” Moultrie said. “We work a lot on hitting, so I guess it’s a new year, and I guess I’m feeling good. I’m glad to contribute to the team any way.”
Florida added the final two runs in the following inning off Schutte’s second home run of the game, a bomb through the trees in right field, and a Bruder hard-hit single down the first base line.
The offensive breakout also gave Walton some freedom to give his two freshmen pitchers some work. Erin Schuppert came in relief for Stephanie Brombacher in the first game, pitching two perfect innings while throwing only 12 pitches. Ensley Gammel got the start in the second game, giving up five hits in three innings. Gammel also added a hit in the first game. Walton certainly liked what he saw out of his two young arms.
“They both pitched really well,” Walton said. “Any time you give up more hits than walks and you don’t give up that many hits, I thought they both did a good job just keeping us in it and letting the defense work behind them.”
Walton elected to pull Gammel in game two with the game tied at 0-0, after she allowed the first two batters to reach base on singles. Walton said he didn’t know if he would have let her work her way through it if the Gators had a lead. But he also said Gammel was on a pitch count after not pitching much this season.
Brombacher came in and cleaned up, as she had another stellar all-around performance. She only allowed a hit in each of her appearances, which totaled seven innings, while also allowing three walks and 11 strikeouts combined. Brombacher picked up both wins to move to 9-1 on the season.
Overall, the Gators couldn’t have asked for much more from both their bats and their pitchers, but as Bruder said after the game, “there is always room for improvement,” which is a scary thought for what this team can put together as the season rolls on.