Gators' Liam Peterson Named SEC Pitcher of the Week

Fresh off arguably the best outing of his 2026 campaign, Florida Gators junior pitcher Liam Peterson on Monday took home his first SEC Pitcher of the Week honors.

Peterson (2-5, 4.00 ERA) struck out 11 batters against just one walk and three hits in seven innings against LSU as the Gators took home an 11-1 victory on Friday to clinch the series. The 11 strikeouts marked his third time this season reaching that mark after a 12-strikeout performance against Kennesaw State and an 11-strikeout game against High Point.

"That's the best he's pitched all year long. I'm really proud of the way he pitched tonight," head coach Kevin O'Sullivan said after the win. "Eleven strikeouts, only one walk. He was in command the whole night with all of his pitches."

Liam wit it, rock wit it 🤘

🔗 | https://t.co/Bbtao0MfJP pic.twitter.com/6cA4GAj70U
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) May 18, 2026

Peterson was utterly dominant in the win, recording at least one strikeout in every inning and two strikeouts in four innings, including back-to-back swinging strikeouts to clinch the seven-inning run-rule win.

"The only hiccup he had, I think he threw five or six pitches in a row for a ball early in the game," O'Sullivan said. "Other than that, he threw his breaking ball for strikes, he threw his slider for strikes, threw a couple changeups, fastball command was as good as it's been all year long. I mean, he was really good, really good. Couldn't ask for anything more."

Peterson's 11 strikeouts last week gives him 99 on the season, good for sixth in the SEC.

Peterson has had quite the up-and-down junior campaign, going from Florida's Friday ace to the Gators' Saturday starter. Last week's performance, however, could be the key for the Gators to make a deep run in the postseason with Aidan King headlining the pitching staff and Peterson, at his best, giving Florida one of the top pitching duos in the entire country.

King, a contender for SEC Pitcher of the Year, ranks second in the SEC in both earned run average with a 2.50 ERA and in walks and hits per inning pitched with a 1.82 WHIP. His 1.99 batting average against also ranks third in the SEC.

The Gators, finishing the regular season with a 37-18 overall record and 18-12 mark in conference play, enter the postseason as the No. 5 seed in the SEC Tournament and are slated to face either No. 12 Vanderbilt or No. 13 Kentucky on Wednesday at approximately 2 p.m. Florida has not announced a starting pitcher for the game.

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