Austin Strickland Dazzles; Florida Uses Four-Run Seventh Inning to Win Series Over Kentucky
LEXINGTON, Ky. — No. 19 Kentucky and No. 4 Florida engaged in an electric pitcher's duel in the rubber match of the final game of the regular season on Saturday afternoon at Kentucky Proud Park.
Reliever-turned-starter Austin Strickland dazzled in his first start of the season for UK, but still took the loss, as some small ball, a defensive miscue and a huge pinch-hit knock propelled the Gators to a four-run seventh inning that broke a 0-0 deadlock and proved to be the difference.
Florida (42-13, 20-10 SEC) two-way superstar Jac Caglianone was just as good, earning the win thanks to seven scoreless innings, where he allowed just four hits, three walks and struck out eight, leading the Gators to a gutsy 4-2 win.
Kentucky (36-17, 16-14) had opportunities, but couldn't cash in, a theme that's become all-too common this season. The Cats went 1-for-11 with runners on base and 1-for-8 with two outs on Saturday.
Kentucky head coach Nick Mingione and pitching coach Dan Roszel had built up Strickland over the last two weekends, extending his latest relief outings to 5.0 and 4.0 innings, respectively.
"We've gotten some great mileage out of (Strickland). Every time he takes the mound, he's so competitive, he's gonna give us a chance and just love his competitive spirit, the way he attacks," Mingione said following the right-hander's outing at Tennessee a week ago.
With usual weekend starter Tyler Bosma having struggled his last few times out, Kentucky made the decision to start Strickland in his place, giving the junior a chance to continue his growth as the postseason rapidly approaches.
The choice worked wonders, as Strickland sliced and diced his way to seven strikeouts across 6.2 innings, throwing a season-high 86 pitches. He and Caglianone embarked on a back-and-forth pitching duel that witnessed fastballs routinely touch 96 mph, while changeups and sliders routinely kept opposing hitters off balance.
"Super impressed," Mingione said. "I told our team 'that's what a Kentucky pitcher looks like.' He was on the attack, up-tempo, threw multiple pitches for a strike, threw his fastball to both sides of the plate.
UK catcher Devin Burkes doubled down the left-field line to lead off the bottom of the second and stole third one batter later. Jase Felker tried to execute a safety squeeze to bring Burkes home, but Caglianone made an athletic play, scooping the ball with his glove back to UF catcher BT Riopelle, leading to an out at the plate.
That would be the only time Kentucky got a runner to third base until the eighth inning, when Grant Smith made more history by hitting a home run in his fifth straight game — becoming the first Cat to do so in SEC play since AJ Reed in 2014.
The damage was already done by then, though. Strickland went back out to the mound for his seventh inning of work to face the middle of the order for the third time. After walking Caglianone, the pitcher/designated hitter stole his second bag of the game and was then bunted over to third by Josh Rivera.
Up stepped Riopelle, who went first-pitch swinging, lofting a deep sacrifice fly to left field, finally pushing across a run. A costly defensive miscue ensued, as Smith laid out to make a diving grab in the hole, opted to throw to first base even though he had no chance of throwing out Tyler Shelnut.
The ball went under Hunter Gilliam, giving the Gators a free 90 feet, which immediately came into play, as Luke Heyman then drove an RBI single into center to double the Gator advantage.
Strickland was finally pulled in favor of left-hander Evan Byers, who proceeded to serve up a two-run homer to pinch-hitter Dale Thomas, his first of the season. In a flash, the Cats were down 4-0.
Following Smith's homer in the eighth, another double from Burkes and SAC-fly from Reuben Church pulled one more run back, but it wasn't enough, as the Gators let the home team and fans here it as they left Kentucky Proud Park with a major series win.
"Thankful for all these fans, you know, just this weekend, pretty awesome. Just to see the home-field advantage that we were able to create. This league is a real challenge, having been in it for 17 years, it doesn't get easier, it gets harder," Mingione said.
Kentucky will now wait to find out its path in Hoover, Ala. for the SEC Tournament next weekend. The Wildcats will play in the single elimination round on Tuesday, May 23, though their seed and opponent is still up in the air.
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