Shelnut Swings Florida Past No. 13 Vanderbilt--Tyler Shelnut homered and drove in five and Fisher Jameson closed it out with 3 1/3 scoreless frames.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Highlighted by a career game from third baseman Tyler Shelnut, Florida came from behind to defeat No. 13 Vanderbilt by a score of 6-2 at Hawkins Field on Saturday afternoon.
With the performance, the Gators own 11 comeback wins on the season and have come from behind in all eight of the team's conference victories. Shelnut (2-for-5) was the hero in the finale, as he homered and doubled en route to a five-RBI day. On the hill, Jac Caglianonefired five strong innings of two-run ball and Fisher Jameson closed it out with 3 1/3 scoreless, one-hit innings of relief to earn the save.
The Commodores (29-11, 10-8 SEC) and Gators (20-19, 8-10 SEC) traded zeros across the first two frames, with Caglianone stranding one baserunner in each inning while striking out two batters. Vanderbilt eventually broke through in the third, snatching a 2-0 lead on a two-run double down the left-field line by Alan Espinal.
Florida got one run right back in the top of the fourth to cut the deficit in half, with Colby Shelton hitting an automatic double to right field and later scoring on an RBI two-bagger into the right-center gap off the bat of Cade Kurland.
After Landon Russell worked a full count with two outs, Vanderbilt starter JD Thompson was ejected from the contest for the use of illegal foreign substances. That forced the Commodores to call on reliever Ethan McElvain, but the southpaw was injured during warm-up tosses and replaced by right-hander Luke Guth who utilized a strikeout to send a 2-1 matchup into the bottom of the fourth.
Caglianone stranded a pair of Commodores in the bottom half by utilizing two strikeouts, allowing the Gators to jump in front in the top of the fifth. Jaylen Guy was hit by a pitch and Caglianone walked to set the table before Shelnut hammered a two-out, 0-2 offering over the left-field wall for a go-ahead, three-run home run.
Leading 4-2, Caglianone blanked the Dores in the fifth aided by a diving grab in right-center field to end the inning by Ty Evans. Caglianone exited at the onset of the sixth and with the bases loaded and two outs, Florida called on Jameson to calm the tide. Jameson needed just one pitch to induce a groundout of RJ Austin to shortstop to maintain the two-run UF edge through six frames.
Jameson held Vanderbilt in check again in the seventh, striking out two more batters to strand a two-out single. The right-hander retired the side in order in the eighth while raising his strikeout total to four.
Florida got some much-needed insurance in the ninth to push its lead to 6-2. With two outs and runners on second and third, Shelnut delivered a two-run double into the left-center field gap to plate Guy and Caglianone.
Jameson ultimately pitched the Orange & Blue across the finish line, working a clean ninth inning to cement a 5-2 win. He finished with 3 1/3 scoreless frames, allowing just one hit and striking out six.
Caglianone (5-0) picked up the victory on five innings of two-run ball. The southpaw was charged with six hits allowed, three walks and five strikeouts.
Guth (1-1) was saddled with the loss, as he surrendered three earned runs over 1 1/3 innings on one hit and two walks. He struck out two.
Vanderbilt starter JD Thompson did not factor into the contest, having been ejected in the fourth. He allowed one earned run over 3 2/3 frames on four hits and two walks while fanning six.
Shelnut, Shelton (2-for-5) and Kurland (2-for-5) logged multi-hit games.
NOTABLES
* Saturday's official attendance was 3,802.
* The Gators own 11 comeback wins on the season.
* Florida has come from behind in all eight of the team's SEC victories.
* Vanderbilt's starter, Thompson, was ejected with two outs in the top of the fourth inning for illegal use of foreign substances.
* Caglianone's streak of nine-straight games with a home run was snapped on Saturday.
* On Friday, Caglianone tied the NCAA record set by Nevada's Tyler Bosetti in 2021 by homering for a ninth-straight game in the sixth inning.
* Caglianone extended his on-base streak to 25 games and hitting streak to 18 games.
* Shelnut hit a three-run shot for his 12th home run to give Florida the lead in the fifth.
* With a two-run double in the ninth, Shelnut tied his career high with five RBI.
* Florida put the leadoff man on base in each of the first six innings, finishing with seven of nine.
* Jameson earned the second save of his career on 3 1/3 shutout innings and a career-high six strikeouts.
* Across the team's last 71 tilts against SEC teams, Florida is 45-26.
* That includes a 37-23 regular-season mark.
* The Gators are 46-23 in weekend series since the start of last season and 55-26 across their last 27 series.
* Florida is now 148-81-1 all-time vs. Vanderbilt including 58-49-1 in Nashville.
* The Gators are 35-23 against the Commodores under head coach Kevin O'Sullivan (10-14 away).
FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN O'SULLIVAN
On the victory…
"This is one we obviously needed. Jac [Caglianone] gave us a really good start, really good start. I think playing him on Tuesday, not playing on first has helped in his last few starts. I think he's got his legs underneath him DH'ing him on Tuesday. Obviously, Fisher Jameson came in and was just outstanding again. He's been good the last couple of weeks, really, really good. Getting the ball down. Then, obviously, Tyler Shelnut had a big day. The three-run homer. The double there in the ninth was huge for us to extend our lead. Overall, it was a good day for us and we needed this one."
On Shelnut's home run…
"No doubt. We kind of knew during BP that the ball wasn't going to carry today, but he put a really good swing on it, 0-2 pitch. The thing about it is, he had a little bit of a rough weekend coming into today. I think he struck out his first at bat, but he kept his head into it. Obviously, the game always comes back around to you, and he had some really good at bats after his first one, for sure."
On moving forward…
"It's been frustrating. We've been through this quite a few times after some games, but we put ourselves in this position. The only people that can change it is us. Obviously, everything is in front of us and every game matters. I just talked about it again. Tuesday night is another big game for us. Every game seems like a playoff game and we're going to have to continue to play well, that's for sure."
UP NEXT
Florida returns home to host Stetson on Tuesday with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network+.
Florida Falls Short to Texas A&M in Semifinals
Florida was faced with an intense opponent in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament, falling 4-2 to No. 12 Texas A&M. The Gators saw an early advantage after claiming the doubles point but they were unable to pull ahead in singles. Florida's loss to the Aggies ends its 11-match win streak.
ATHENS, Ga. - No. 14 Florida women's tennis falls to No. 12 Texas A&M in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament. The Gators put up a strong fight securing the doubles point, but were unable to get past the No. 1 player in the nation, Mary Stoiana and the return of Carson Branstine.
Florida saw the immediate challenge in front of them as they fought for every ball on the doubles side. In familiar fashion, Carly Briggs and Qavia Lopez closed out first in doubles defeating Carson Branstine and Nicole Khirin 6-4. Court one was next with Alicia Dudeney and Malwina Rowinska falling to No. 3 Mia Kupres and Mary Stoiana 6-3. With the doubles matches split it all came down to Rachel Gailis and Bente Speeon court three.
Gailis and Spee took a fast lead over Jeanette Mireles and Lucciana Perez at 4-1, but the Aggie's increased their net presence to get the match tied up at 4-4, and then at 5-5. Headed into extra games the Gators knew how vital it was to close out and claim the early advantage. Gailis and Spee dug deep to win two in a row and claim a 7-5 victory on court three.
Singles proved to be an extreme challenge with the Gators only winning two first sets. No. 68 Carly Briggs took hers 7-5 over No. 19 Nicole Khirin and Bente Spee defeated Jeanette Mireles 6-4. Despite losing its early advantage Florida's Rachel Gailis came back to take her second set 6-3 over the heavy competitor, Carson Branstine.
Ultimately, Florida was only able to pull out one singles victory with Carly Briggs defeating No. 19 Khirin 7-5, 2-6, 6-1. Briggs win over Khirin now extends her win streak to eight.
Other third set thrillers were Rachel Gailis on court one and Bente Spee on court six. Florida's tough battle closes out their time in Athens, Georgia, as they will return home to prepare for the NCAA Tournament.
QUICK HITS:
* Florida's win streak ends at 11 with the loss against Texas A&M
* Florida has made a combined 34 semifinal appearances in program history
* Its program record in the semifinals now stands at 27-7
* The Gators have secured the doubles point over its opponent in 11 consecutive matches
* Florida's record when winning the doubles point now stands at 11-1
* Florida has only lost the doubles point four times this season:
* Pepperdine (Feb. 25), Texas A&M (Mar. 3), Georgia (Mar. 8), Tennessee (Mar. 10)
* Since changing all three pairings on Mar. 15 Florida has yet to lose the doubles point
* Carly Briggs holds the longest win streak on Florida's current roster, winning eight consecutive singles matches
* Rachel Gailis and Bente Spee have now won seven consecutive doubles matches
* Gailis has secured 10 singles wins over SEC opponents this season
* 8 during conference play, 1 during non-conference play, 1 during post-season
* 9 of these victories were claimed on court one
Singles: (order of finish 2,5,4,3,1)
1. Carson Branstine (TAMU) def. #8 Rachel Gailis (UF) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
2. #1 Mary Stoiana (TAMU) def. #71 Sara Dahlstrom (UF) 6-2, 6-0
3. #68 Carly Briggs (UF) def. #19 Nicole Khirin (TAMU) 7-5, 2-6, 6-1
4. #41 Mia Kupres (TAMU) def. Alicia Dudeney (UF) 6-2, 2-2
5. Lucciana Perez (TAMU) def. #111 Qavia Lopez (UF) 6-0, 7-5
6. Jeanette Mireles (TAMU) vs. Bente Spee (UF) 4-6, 6-1, 4-2, unfinished
Doubles: (order of finish 2,3)
1. #3 Mary Stoiana/Mia Kupres (TAMU) def. #50 Alicia Dudeney/Malwina Rowinska (UF) 6-3
2. Carly Briggs/Qavia Lopez (UF) def. Carson Branstine/Nicole Khirin (TAMU) 6-4
3. Rachel Gailis/Bente Spee (UF) def. Jeanette Mireles/Lucciana Perez (TAMU) 7-5
NEXT UP:
The Gators will return to Gainesville and prepare for the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The first round of NCAA's will be the weekend of May 3-5. More information on that will be announced at the conclusion of all conference tournaments.
Gamecocks Even Series with No. 10 Gators. Despite Florida outhitting South Carolina eight to seven in the contest, SC evened the series 1-1 with UF.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The 10th-ranked Florida softball team dropped game two of the series to South Carolina, 6-2, early Saturday afternoon at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
The Gators (36-10, 11-6 SEC) produced eight hits off South Carolina (30-16, 6-11 SEC) starting pitcher Alana Vawter (13-8), but were only able to scratch across a pair of runs off the graduate transfer.
Florida fell behind in the contest early, 3-0, after a solo home run by Jen Cummings in the top of the third and a two-run home run by Aniyah Black in the top of the fourth. Reagan Walsh was able to close down the lead to 3-1 in the home half of the fourth inning as she ripped her 14th home run of the year over the left field wall.
In addition, UF managed to put pressure on SC by advancing a runner to third base in three of the first four innings, but Vawter was able to escape each time except for Walsh's solo blast.
South Carolina responded with another two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning to extend its lead out to 5-1. Riley Blampied's one-out single to center field was followed by a Zoe Laneaux homer to left center. The Gamecocks capped their scoring in the top of the seventh frame with a solo home run to lead off the frame by Denver Bryant.
The Gators attempted a rally and brought the tying run to the on-deck circle in the bottom of the seventh as Kendra Falby reached on a hit and error to lead off the rally. Korbe Otis and Skylar Wallace followed with back-to-back walks to load the bases with no outs, when then brought Jocelyn Erickson to the plate who recorded her 57th RBI of the year via an RBI fielder's choice that scored Falby from third and closed down the lead to 6-2. The Gamecocks went on to thwart any future rally and ended the game on a flyout double play to right center field.
The two teams will play for the series Sunday, April 21, at 11:30 a.m. with the game airing on SEC Network.
Ninth Ranked Gators Breeze by Bearcats for 14th consecutive Victory. Florida improves to 5-0 in conference play and have secured at least a share of the AAC Regular Season Title.
CINCINNATI, Ohio - The No. 9 Florida lacrosse team (14-2, 5-0 AAC) won their 14th straight game of the season, defeating their AAC counterpart Cincinnati (10-6, 2-3 AAC) by a score of 18-6 on Saturday afternoon.
The Gators never trailed in this contest, and led by as many 13 goals. They used two 7-0 runs, one in the first and one in the second half to create the separation needed to pull away.
Florida had 10 different goal scorers, charged ahead by the trio of Maggi Hall (three goals, three assists), Danielle Pavinelli (three goals, one assist), and Ashley Gonzalez (three goals, two assists), who combined for nine of the teams 18 goals, six of the teams eight assists, and 15 of the teams 26 points. Emily Heller and Gianna Monaco contributed with multi goal games, along with Madison Waters, Hannah Heller, Cate Isaacson, Gabbi Koury and Sarah Falk who scored one each.
Florida doubled up Cincinnati in the draw circle, winning that battle 18-9. Liz Harrison got back on track, winning 14 draw controls which was good for her 12th double digit game of the season.
The Gators defense held the Bearcats to six goal on .207 percent shooting, as Ashley Dyer set career highs in ground balls and caused turnovers with three each. Pavinelli tied a career high three caused turnovers, and Hall scooped three ground balls. Elyse Finnelle was lock down in net again, re-setting her career high saving 14 shots. This was her second straight game with 10 or more saves, and her fourth overall.
How It Happened
* After a save from Finnelle and a successful clear into the Bearcats attacking zone, Monaco drew a free position opportunity and converted at the 13:27 mark to give the Gators a 1-0 lead.
* 53 seconds later, Heller scored her 11th free position goal of the season, putting the Gators up two.
* Following a goal from Cincinnati, the Gators rallied with five unanswered goals of their own in a six-minute span. Three of them came via free position shots, as Hall had two and Heller had one. Koury and Pavinelli scored the other two off assists from Gonzalez and Waters to give UF a six-goal cushion with 3:48 left.
* The Bearcats scored two goals to end the quarter, including a Lindsey Durkota finish with seven seconds left, to cut the Florida lead to 7-3 after one.
Second Quarter
* It took just 24 seconds for the blue and orange to score. Off the draw control win from Harrison, the Gators marched into the Bearcats zone where Pavinelli drew a foul, and connected on the eight-meter opportunity to make it 8-3.
* Off an intercepted pass from Dyer around midfield, the Gators quickly capitalized as she got it up to Hall, who fed Monaco for the score, putting the score at 9-3.
* Gonzalez scored back-to-back goals in 57 seconds, scoring one off a free position opportunity and the other off an assist from Monaco to increase the lead to eight with 6:55 left.
* 37 seconds later, Pavinelli caused a turnover on the Bearcats clear attempt, leading to her finding Hall for the conversion to push the score to 12-3.
* Falk and Waters concluded a 7-0 Gators run off assists from Gonzalez and Hall to give UF an 11-goal advantage with 2:36 left. A late Bearcats goal, brought the Gators into halftime up 10.
Third Quarter
* UF scored three goals to begin the quarter, as Hannah Heller kicked it off with a free position score, followed by goals from Gonzalez and Pavinelli to push the lead to a baker's dozen with 6:34 left.
* The Bearcats got one with 1:09 left in the quarter, to make it 17-5 after three.
Fourth Quarter
* Isaacson kicked off the fourth quarter scoring on an unassisted dodge from the right wing into the middle, putting the Gators back up 13.
* A Bearcats score was the last bit of scoring on the afternoon, as Florida went on to win 18-6.
Coach O'Leary's Insight
"I'm so proud of this team and how they played today. We had a very good week of practice and they came out ready to go. Cincinnati is a great team and very well coached, so we needed to play our best to win. Elyse was fantastic in goal and our defense was outstanding. Offensively we shared the ball well and saw a lot of different goal scorers. We look forward to honoring our seniors against Temple next Saturday!"
Key Notes
* Florida improves to 13-0 all-time against the Bearcats, securing their 11th win by 12 or more goals
* UF owns a 30-1 record in AAC history
* The Gators scored a season high nine free position goals
* UF led the assists battle 8-2
* Celeste Forte made her second career start
* Florida has clinched a share of the AAC Regular Season Title
* The Gators shot .581 from the field today, good for their 10th game this season shooting over .500
* This is the Gators 11th win by 10 or more goals
Season/Career Highs
* Ashley Dyer - career high three ground balls and three caused turnovers
* Elyse Finnelle - career high 14 saves
* Danielle Pavinelli - season high three caused turnovers
Active Streaks (eight games or better)
* Maggi Hall: points (35)
* Emily Heller: points (23), goals (17)
* Liz Harrison: draw controls (17)
* Danielle Pavinelli: points (15)
* Ashley Gonzalez: points (14)
* Sarah Falk: points (12)
* Elyse Finnelle: saves (8)
Next up
No. 9 Florida (14-2, 5-0 AAC) look to seal the AAC Championship outright, as they return home next Saturday for Senior Day against Temple at 12 p.m.
Florida Gymnastics Fourth in NCAA Final. FORT WORTH, Texas – Florida gymnastics finished fourth in Saturday’s NCAA Team Final at Dickie’s Arena to close the 2024 season.
Louisiana State celebrated its first NCAA gymnastics title with a 198.225, becoming just the eighth team in the 42-year history of the event to claim a team win.
California was second at 197.85, followed by Utah (197.80) and Florida (197.4375).
LSU joins Alabama (6 titles), Georgia (10) and Florida (3) as the fourth Southeastern Conference team to win a NCAA Gymnastics team title. No other league has more than one team claiming titles – Pac-12 (UCLA, 7), Big 12 (Oklahoma, 6), Western Athletic (Utah, 9) and Big Ten (Michigan, 1). Utah, part of the Pac-12 since 2011, was a member of the WAC when it won its NCAA titles.
“Extremely humbled, proud, grateful for the opportunity that this team put themselves in a position to even be here this evening. It may not have been the exact outcome that we wanted but sometimes you don’t always get what you want,” Florida Coach Jenny Rowland said. “Just reflecting on a very memorable year. A year filled with peaks, a year filled with valleys, a year that there were so many people who doubted the Gators would even be able to be in this position. This team fought and continued to show up day after day, getting one percent better. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”
THIS AFTERNOON’S MEET:
Florida was assigned Olympic rotation for Saturday’s final. The vault landings didn’t come as easily as Thursday with only Danie Ferris breaking 9.9, leading the team at 9.9125. Fellow freshman Skylar Draser led off with a 9.875 and senior Victoria Nguyen posted a 9.85. Florida tallied a 49.25 on vault.
Florida found those sticks on the next rotation with each of the six hitting her dismount. Draser equaled her collegiate best of 9.9 and Leanne Wong anchored with the day’s winning mark of 9.95. Anya Pilgrim posted 9.8875, with Nguyen (9.875) and Sloane Blakely (9.8625) also adding into UF’s bars total of 49.475.
Balance beam opened with two Gators equaling their collegiate best - first Draser (9.90) and then Blakely (9.95). Pilgrim earned a 9.875 and Ellie Lazzari anchored with a 9.85. Some balance checks and a miss dinged the scoring potential, as the Gators tallied a 49.2375.
The floor exercise lead-off and anchor led the Gators, with Nguyen starting off at 9.9125 and Wong finishing with the day’s high floor mark of 9.95. Lazzari earned a 9.8875 with Blakely and Pilgrim contributing 9.8625s toward UF’s total of 49.475.
EVENT WINNERS:
Vault
Haleigh Bryant
LSU
9.950
Mya Lauzon
California
9.950
Uneven Bars
Leanne Wong
Florida
9.950
Grace McCallum
Utah
9.950
Balance Beam
Konnor McClain
LSU
9.9625
Floor Exercise
Leanne Wong
Florida
9.950
All-Around
Haleigh Bryant
LSU
39.7125
eMjae Frazier
California
39.7125
No 10.0s were awarded in 2024 NCAA semifinal or team final competition. The last time no 10.0s were scored at the NCAA Championship site was 2021.
GATOR PERFORMANCE NOTES:
* Skylar Draser equaled two collegiate bests Saturday with 9.90s for both uneven bars and balance beam. She finished her freshman season with four consecutive beam 9.9s – all coming in NCAA Regional or NCAA Championship action. Draser started off the Gators’ beam lineup with a 9.9 six times in 2024.
* Sloane Blakely scored her collegiate beam best of 9.95 for the fifth time of her Gator career and for the first time in 2024 in today’s NCAA Team Final. She shared second on the event Saturday. Blakely joins All-American Bridget Sloan (2013, 2014) as the only Gators with a 9.95 in NCAA Team Final competition.
* Marks of 9.95 gave Leanne Wong both the day’s uneven bars and floor exercise wins. She finished 2024 with a collegiate-high 23 event wins to lead Florida in 2024. She is 10th on Florida’s Career Wins chart (61).
* This is the second consecutive year Wong won bars in the NCAA Team Final, sharing the 2023 win with teammate Kayla DiCello at 9.975. A Gator has won at least a share of the NCAA Team Final bars title every year since 2021: Wong (2024), Wong/DiCello (2023), Trinity Thomas (2022) and Megan Skaggs (2021)
* Collegiate bests today:
* Sloane Blakely: beam (9.95)
* Skylar Draser: uneven bars & balance team (9.90)
NEXT UP:
The NCAA Championships ends the 2024 collegiate gymnastics season. Four join the Gators next season.
Florida signed Lily Bruce and Taylor Clark in the fall. Skye Blakely also signed with the Gators in fall of 2022, but deferred enrollment until fall of 2024 as she looks to earn a berth on the 2024 U.S. Olympic team. In February, the Gators announced that Alyssa Orgen also joins the 2025 team.
No. 4 Florida at NCAA Semifinal II
Team Totals
April 20, 2024 – Dickies Arena
Team
Vault
Bars
Beam
Floor
Total
LSU
49.400
49.450
49.7625
49.6125
198.225
California
49.500
49.500
49.4750
49.375
197.850
Utah
49.300
49.4375
49.475
49.5875
197.800
Florida
49.250
49.475
49.2375
49.475
197.4375
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Highlighted by a career game from third baseman Tyler Shelnut, Florida came from behind to defeat No. 13 Vanderbilt by a score of 6-2 at Hawkins Field on Saturday afternoon.
With the performance, the Gators own 11 comeback wins on the season and have come from behind in all eight of the team's conference victories. Shelnut (2-for-5) was the hero in the finale, as he homered and doubled en route to a five-RBI day. On the hill, Jac Caglianonefired five strong innings of two-run ball and Fisher Jameson closed it out with 3 1/3 scoreless, one-hit innings of relief to earn the save.
The Commodores (29-11, 10-8 SEC) and Gators (20-19, 8-10 SEC) traded zeros across the first two frames, with Caglianone stranding one baserunner in each inning while striking out two batters. Vanderbilt eventually broke through in the third, snatching a 2-0 lead on a two-run double down the left-field line by Alan Espinal.
Florida got one run right back in the top of the fourth to cut the deficit in half, with Colby Shelton hitting an automatic double to right field and later scoring on an RBI two-bagger into the right-center gap off the bat of Cade Kurland.
After Landon Russell worked a full count with two outs, Vanderbilt starter JD Thompson was ejected from the contest for the use of illegal foreign substances. That forced the Commodores to call on reliever Ethan McElvain, but the southpaw was injured during warm-up tosses and replaced by right-hander Luke Guth who utilized a strikeout to send a 2-1 matchup into the bottom of the fourth.
Caglianone stranded a pair of Commodores in the bottom half by utilizing two strikeouts, allowing the Gators to jump in front in the top of the fifth. Jaylen Guy was hit by a pitch and Caglianone walked to set the table before Shelnut hammered a two-out, 0-2 offering over the left-field wall for a go-ahead, three-run home run.
Leading 4-2, Caglianone blanked the Dores in the fifth aided by a diving grab in right-center field to end the inning by Ty Evans. Caglianone exited at the onset of the sixth and with the bases loaded and two outs, Florida called on Jameson to calm the tide. Jameson needed just one pitch to induce a groundout of RJ Austin to shortstop to maintain the two-run UF edge through six frames.
Jameson held Vanderbilt in check again in the seventh, striking out two more batters to strand a two-out single. The right-hander retired the side in order in the eighth while raising his strikeout total to four.
Florida got some much-needed insurance in the ninth to push its lead to 6-2. With two outs and runners on second and third, Shelnut delivered a two-run double into the left-center field gap to plate Guy and Caglianone.
Jameson ultimately pitched the Orange & Blue across the finish line, working a clean ninth inning to cement a 5-2 win. He finished with 3 1/3 scoreless frames, allowing just one hit and striking out six.
Caglianone (5-0) picked up the victory on five innings of two-run ball. The southpaw was charged with six hits allowed, three walks and five strikeouts.
Guth (1-1) was saddled with the loss, as he surrendered three earned runs over 1 1/3 innings on one hit and two walks. He struck out two.
Vanderbilt starter JD Thompson did not factor into the contest, having been ejected in the fourth. He allowed one earned run over 3 2/3 frames on four hits and two walks while fanning six.
Shelnut, Shelton (2-for-5) and Kurland (2-for-5) logged multi-hit games.
NOTABLES
* Saturday's official attendance was 3,802.
* The Gators own 11 comeback wins on the season.
* Florida has come from behind in all eight of the team's SEC victories.
* Vanderbilt's starter, Thompson, was ejected with two outs in the top of the fourth inning for illegal use of foreign substances.
* Caglianone's streak of nine-straight games with a home run was snapped on Saturday.
* On Friday, Caglianone tied the NCAA record set by Nevada's Tyler Bosetti in 2021 by homering for a ninth-straight game in the sixth inning.
* Caglianone extended his on-base streak to 25 games and hitting streak to 18 games.
* Shelnut hit a three-run shot for his 12th home run to give Florida the lead in the fifth.
* With a two-run double in the ninth, Shelnut tied his career high with five RBI.
* Florida put the leadoff man on base in each of the first six innings, finishing with seven of nine.
* Jameson earned the second save of his career on 3 1/3 shutout innings and a career-high six strikeouts.
* Across the team's last 71 tilts against SEC teams, Florida is 45-26.
* That includes a 37-23 regular-season mark.
* The Gators are 46-23 in weekend series since the start of last season and 55-26 across their last 27 series.
* Florida is now 148-81-1 all-time vs. Vanderbilt including 58-49-1 in Nashville.
* The Gators are 35-23 against the Commodores under head coach Kevin O'Sullivan (10-14 away).
FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN O'SULLIVAN
On the victory…
"This is one we obviously needed. Jac [Caglianone] gave us a really good start, really good start. I think playing him on Tuesday, not playing on first has helped in his last few starts. I think he's got his legs underneath him DH'ing him on Tuesday. Obviously, Fisher Jameson came in and was just outstanding again. He's been good the last couple of weeks, really, really good. Getting the ball down. Then, obviously, Tyler Shelnut had a big day. The three-run homer. The double there in the ninth was huge for us to extend our lead. Overall, it was a good day for us and we needed this one."
On Shelnut's home run…
"No doubt. We kind of knew during BP that the ball wasn't going to carry today, but he put a really good swing on it, 0-2 pitch. The thing about it is, he had a little bit of a rough weekend coming into today. I think he struck out his first at bat, but he kept his head into it. Obviously, the game always comes back around to you, and he had some really good at bats after his first one, for sure."
On moving forward…
"It's been frustrating. We've been through this quite a few times after some games, but we put ourselves in this position. The only people that can change it is us. Obviously, everything is in front of us and every game matters. I just talked about it again. Tuesday night is another big game for us. Every game seems like a playoff game and we're going to have to continue to play well, that's for sure."
UP NEXT
Florida returns home to host Stetson on Tuesday with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network+.
Florida Falls Short to Texas A&M in Semifinals
Florida was faced with an intense opponent in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament, falling 4-2 to No. 12 Texas A&M. The Gators saw an early advantage after claiming the doubles point but they were unable to pull ahead in singles. Florida's loss to the Aggies ends its 11-match win streak.
ATHENS, Ga. - No. 14 Florida women's tennis falls to No. 12 Texas A&M in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament. The Gators put up a strong fight securing the doubles point, but were unable to get past the No. 1 player in the nation, Mary Stoiana and the return of Carson Branstine.
Florida saw the immediate challenge in front of them as they fought for every ball on the doubles side. In familiar fashion, Carly Briggs and Qavia Lopez closed out first in doubles defeating Carson Branstine and Nicole Khirin 6-4. Court one was next with Alicia Dudeney and Malwina Rowinska falling to No. 3 Mia Kupres and Mary Stoiana 6-3. With the doubles matches split it all came down to Rachel Gailis and Bente Speeon court three.
Gailis and Spee took a fast lead over Jeanette Mireles and Lucciana Perez at 4-1, but the Aggie's increased their net presence to get the match tied up at 4-4, and then at 5-5. Headed into extra games the Gators knew how vital it was to close out and claim the early advantage. Gailis and Spee dug deep to win two in a row and claim a 7-5 victory on court three.
Singles proved to be an extreme challenge with the Gators only winning two first sets. No. 68 Carly Briggs took hers 7-5 over No. 19 Nicole Khirin and Bente Spee defeated Jeanette Mireles 6-4. Despite losing its early advantage Florida's Rachel Gailis came back to take her second set 6-3 over the heavy competitor, Carson Branstine.
Ultimately, Florida was only able to pull out one singles victory with Carly Briggs defeating No. 19 Khirin 7-5, 2-6, 6-1. Briggs win over Khirin now extends her win streak to eight.
Other third set thrillers were Rachel Gailis on court one and Bente Spee on court six. Florida's tough battle closes out their time in Athens, Georgia, as they will return home to prepare for the NCAA Tournament.
QUICK HITS:
* Florida's win streak ends at 11 with the loss against Texas A&M
* Florida has made a combined 34 semifinal appearances in program history
* Its program record in the semifinals now stands at 27-7
* The Gators have secured the doubles point over its opponent in 11 consecutive matches
* Florida's record when winning the doubles point now stands at 11-1
* Florida has only lost the doubles point four times this season:
* Pepperdine (Feb. 25), Texas A&M (Mar. 3), Georgia (Mar. 8), Tennessee (Mar. 10)
* Since changing all three pairings on Mar. 15 Florida has yet to lose the doubles point
* Carly Briggs holds the longest win streak on Florida's current roster, winning eight consecutive singles matches
* Rachel Gailis and Bente Spee have now won seven consecutive doubles matches
* Gailis has secured 10 singles wins over SEC opponents this season
* 8 during conference play, 1 during non-conference play, 1 during post-season
* 9 of these victories were claimed on court one
Singles: (order of finish 2,5,4,3,1)
1. Carson Branstine (TAMU) def. #8 Rachel Gailis (UF) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
2. #1 Mary Stoiana (TAMU) def. #71 Sara Dahlstrom (UF) 6-2, 6-0
3. #68 Carly Briggs (UF) def. #19 Nicole Khirin (TAMU) 7-5, 2-6, 6-1
4. #41 Mia Kupres (TAMU) def. Alicia Dudeney (UF) 6-2, 2-2
5. Lucciana Perez (TAMU) def. #111 Qavia Lopez (UF) 6-0, 7-5
6. Jeanette Mireles (TAMU) vs. Bente Spee (UF) 4-6, 6-1, 4-2, unfinished
Doubles: (order of finish 2,3)
1. #3 Mary Stoiana/Mia Kupres (TAMU) def. #50 Alicia Dudeney/Malwina Rowinska (UF) 6-3
2. Carly Briggs/Qavia Lopez (UF) def. Carson Branstine/Nicole Khirin (TAMU) 6-4
3. Rachel Gailis/Bente Spee (UF) def. Jeanette Mireles/Lucciana Perez (TAMU) 7-5
NEXT UP:
The Gators will return to Gainesville and prepare for the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The first round of NCAA's will be the weekend of May 3-5. More information on that will be announced at the conclusion of all conference tournaments.
Gamecocks Even Series with No. 10 Gators. Despite Florida outhitting South Carolina eight to seven in the contest, SC evened the series 1-1 with UF.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The 10th-ranked Florida softball team dropped game two of the series to South Carolina, 6-2, early Saturday afternoon at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
The Gators (36-10, 11-6 SEC) produced eight hits off South Carolina (30-16, 6-11 SEC) starting pitcher Alana Vawter (13-8), but were only able to scratch across a pair of runs off the graduate transfer.
Florida fell behind in the contest early, 3-0, after a solo home run by Jen Cummings in the top of the third and a two-run home run by Aniyah Black in the top of the fourth. Reagan Walsh was able to close down the lead to 3-1 in the home half of the fourth inning as she ripped her 14th home run of the year over the left field wall.
In addition, UF managed to put pressure on SC by advancing a runner to third base in three of the first four innings, but Vawter was able to escape each time except for Walsh's solo blast.
South Carolina responded with another two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning to extend its lead out to 5-1. Riley Blampied's one-out single to center field was followed by a Zoe Laneaux homer to left center. The Gamecocks capped their scoring in the top of the seventh frame with a solo home run to lead off the frame by Denver Bryant.
The Gators attempted a rally and brought the tying run to the on-deck circle in the bottom of the seventh as Kendra Falby reached on a hit and error to lead off the rally. Korbe Otis and Skylar Wallace followed with back-to-back walks to load the bases with no outs, when then brought Jocelyn Erickson to the plate who recorded her 57th RBI of the year via an RBI fielder's choice that scored Falby from third and closed down the lead to 6-2. The Gamecocks went on to thwart any future rally and ended the game on a flyout double play to right center field.
The two teams will play for the series Sunday, April 21, at 11:30 a.m. with the game airing on SEC Network.
Ninth Ranked Gators Breeze by Bearcats for 14th consecutive Victory. Florida improves to 5-0 in conference play and have secured at least a share of the AAC Regular Season Title.
CINCINNATI, Ohio - The No. 9 Florida lacrosse team (14-2, 5-0 AAC) won their 14th straight game of the season, defeating their AAC counterpart Cincinnati (10-6, 2-3 AAC) by a score of 18-6 on Saturday afternoon.
The Gators never trailed in this contest, and led by as many 13 goals. They used two 7-0 runs, one in the first and one in the second half to create the separation needed to pull away.
Florida had 10 different goal scorers, charged ahead by the trio of Maggi Hall (three goals, three assists), Danielle Pavinelli (three goals, one assist), and Ashley Gonzalez (three goals, two assists), who combined for nine of the teams 18 goals, six of the teams eight assists, and 15 of the teams 26 points. Emily Heller and Gianna Monaco contributed with multi goal games, along with Madison Waters, Hannah Heller, Cate Isaacson, Gabbi Koury and Sarah Falk who scored one each.
Florida doubled up Cincinnati in the draw circle, winning that battle 18-9. Liz Harrison got back on track, winning 14 draw controls which was good for her 12th double digit game of the season.
The Gators defense held the Bearcats to six goal on .207 percent shooting, as Ashley Dyer set career highs in ground balls and caused turnovers with three each. Pavinelli tied a career high three caused turnovers, and Hall scooped three ground balls. Elyse Finnelle was lock down in net again, re-setting her career high saving 14 shots. This was her second straight game with 10 or more saves, and her fourth overall.
How It Happened
* After a save from Finnelle and a successful clear into the Bearcats attacking zone, Monaco drew a free position opportunity and converted at the 13:27 mark to give the Gators a 1-0 lead.
* 53 seconds later, Heller scored her 11th free position goal of the season, putting the Gators up two.
* Following a goal from Cincinnati, the Gators rallied with five unanswered goals of their own in a six-minute span. Three of them came via free position shots, as Hall had two and Heller had one. Koury and Pavinelli scored the other two off assists from Gonzalez and Waters to give UF a six-goal cushion with 3:48 left.
* The Bearcats scored two goals to end the quarter, including a Lindsey Durkota finish with seven seconds left, to cut the Florida lead to 7-3 after one.
Second Quarter
* It took just 24 seconds for the blue and orange to score. Off the draw control win from Harrison, the Gators marched into the Bearcats zone where Pavinelli drew a foul, and connected on the eight-meter opportunity to make it 8-3.
* Off an intercepted pass from Dyer around midfield, the Gators quickly capitalized as she got it up to Hall, who fed Monaco for the score, putting the score at 9-3.
* Gonzalez scored back-to-back goals in 57 seconds, scoring one off a free position opportunity and the other off an assist from Monaco to increase the lead to eight with 6:55 left.
* 37 seconds later, Pavinelli caused a turnover on the Bearcats clear attempt, leading to her finding Hall for the conversion to push the score to 12-3.
* Falk and Waters concluded a 7-0 Gators run off assists from Gonzalez and Hall to give UF an 11-goal advantage with 2:36 left. A late Bearcats goal, brought the Gators into halftime up 10.
Third Quarter
* UF scored three goals to begin the quarter, as Hannah Heller kicked it off with a free position score, followed by goals from Gonzalez and Pavinelli to push the lead to a baker's dozen with 6:34 left.
* The Bearcats got one with 1:09 left in the quarter, to make it 17-5 after three.
Fourth Quarter
* Isaacson kicked off the fourth quarter scoring on an unassisted dodge from the right wing into the middle, putting the Gators back up 13.
* A Bearcats score was the last bit of scoring on the afternoon, as Florida went on to win 18-6.
Coach O'Leary's Insight
"I'm so proud of this team and how they played today. We had a very good week of practice and they came out ready to go. Cincinnati is a great team and very well coached, so we needed to play our best to win. Elyse was fantastic in goal and our defense was outstanding. Offensively we shared the ball well and saw a lot of different goal scorers. We look forward to honoring our seniors against Temple next Saturday!"
Key Notes
* Florida improves to 13-0 all-time against the Bearcats, securing their 11th win by 12 or more goals
* UF owns a 30-1 record in AAC history
* The Gators scored a season high nine free position goals
* UF led the assists battle 8-2
* Celeste Forte made her second career start
* Florida has clinched a share of the AAC Regular Season Title
* The Gators shot .581 from the field today, good for their 10th game this season shooting over .500
* This is the Gators 11th win by 10 or more goals
Season/Career Highs
* Ashley Dyer - career high three ground balls and three caused turnovers
* Elyse Finnelle - career high 14 saves
* Danielle Pavinelli - season high three caused turnovers
Active Streaks (eight games or better)
* Maggi Hall: points (35)
* Emily Heller: points (23), goals (17)
* Liz Harrison: draw controls (17)
* Danielle Pavinelli: points (15)
* Ashley Gonzalez: points (14)
* Sarah Falk: points (12)
* Elyse Finnelle: saves (8)
Next up
No. 9 Florida (14-2, 5-0 AAC) look to seal the AAC Championship outright, as they return home next Saturday for Senior Day against Temple at 12 p.m.
Florida Gymnastics Fourth in NCAA Final. FORT WORTH, Texas – Florida gymnastics finished fourth in Saturday’s NCAA Team Final at Dickie’s Arena to close the 2024 season.
Louisiana State celebrated its first NCAA gymnastics title with a 198.225, becoming just the eighth team in the 42-year history of the event to claim a team win.
California was second at 197.85, followed by Utah (197.80) and Florida (197.4375).
LSU joins Alabama (6 titles), Georgia (10) and Florida (3) as the fourth Southeastern Conference team to win a NCAA Gymnastics team title. No other league has more than one team claiming titles – Pac-12 (UCLA, 7), Big 12 (Oklahoma, 6), Western Athletic (Utah, 9) and Big Ten (Michigan, 1). Utah, part of the Pac-12 since 2011, was a member of the WAC when it won its NCAA titles.
“Extremely humbled, proud, grateful for the opportunity that this team put themselves in a position to even be here this evening. It may not have been the exact outcome that we wanted but sometimes you don’t always get what you want,” Florida Coach Jenny Rowland said. “Just reflecting on a very memorable year. A year filled with peaks, a year filled with valleys, a year that there were so many people who doubted the Gators would even be able to be in this position. This team fought and continued to show up day after day, getting one percent better. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”
THIS AFTERNOON’S MEET:
Florida was assigned Olympic rotation for Saturday’s final. The vault landings didn’t come as easily as Thursday with only Danie Ferris breaking 9.9, leading the team at 9.9125. Fellow freshman Skylar Draser led off with a 9.875 and senior Victoria Nguyen posted a 9.85. Florida tallied a 49.25 on vault.
Florida found those sticks on the next rotation with each of the six hitting her dismount. Draser equaled her collegiate best of 9.9 and Leanne Wong anchored with the day’s winning mark of 9.95. Anya Pilgrim posted 9.8875, with Nguyen (9.875) and Sloane Blakely (9.8625) also adding into UF’s bars total of 49.475.
Balance beam opened with two Gators equaling their collegiate best - first Draser (9.90) and then Blakely (9.95). Pilgrim earned a 9.875 and Ellie Lazzari anchored with a 9.85. Some balance checks and a miss dinged the scoring potential, as the Gators tallied a 49.2375.
The floor exercise lead-off and anchor led the Gators, with Nguyen starting off at 9.9125 and Wong finishing with the day’s high floor mark of 9.95. Lazzari earned a 9.8875 with Blakely and Pilgrim contributing 9.8625s toward UF’s total of 49.475.
EVENT WINNERS:
Vault
Haleigh Bryant
LSU
9.950
Mya Lauzon
California
9.950
Uneven Bars
Leanne Wong
Florida
9.950
Grace McCallum
Utah
9.950
Balance Beam
Konnor McClain
LSU
9.9625
Floor Exercise
Leanne Wong
Florida
9.950
All-Around
Haleigh Bryant
LSU
39.7125
eMjae Frazier
California
39.7125
No 10.0s were awarded in 2024 NCAA semifinal or team final competition. The last time no 10.0s were scored at the NCAA Championship site was 2021.
GATOR PERFORMANCE NOTES:
* Skylar Draser equaled two collegiate bests Saturday with 9.90s for both uneven bars and balance beam. She finished her freshman season with four consecutive beam 9.9s – all coming in NCAA Regional or NCAA Championship action. Draser started off the Gators’ beam lineup with a 9.9 six times in 2024.
* Sloane Blakely scored her collegiate beam best of 9.95 for the fifth time of her Gator career and for the first time in 2024 in today’s NCAA Team Final. She shared second on the event Saturday. Blakely joins All-American Bridget Sloan (2013, 2014) as the only Gators with a 9.95 in NCAA Team Final competition.
* Marks of 9.95 gave Leanne Wong both the day’s uneven bars and floor exercise wins. She finished 2024 with a collegiate-high 23 event wins to lead Florida in 2024. She is 10th on Florida’s Career Wins chart (61).
* This is the second consecutive year Wong won bars in the NCAA Team Final, sharing the 2023 win with teammate Kayla DiCello at 9.975. A Gator has won at least a share of the NCAA Team Final bars title every year since 2021: Wong (2024), Wong/DiCello (2023), Trinity Thomas (2022) and Megan Skaggs (2021)
* Collegiate bests today:
* Sloane Blakely: beam (9.95)
* Skylar Draser: uneven bars & balance team (9.90)
NEXT UP:
The NCAA Championships ends the 2024 collegiate gymnastics season. Four join the Gators next season.
Florida signed Lily Bruce and Taylor Clark in the fall. Skye Blakely also signed with the Gators in fall of 2022, but deferred enrollment until fall of 2024 as she looks to earn a berth on the 2024 U.S. Olympic team. In February, the Gators announced that Alyssa Orgen also joins the 2025 team.
No. 4 Florida at NCAA Semifinal II
Team Totals
April 20, 2024 – Dickies Arena
Team
Vault
Bars
Beam
Floor
Total
LSU
49.400
49.450
49.7625
49.6125
198.225
California
49.500
49.500
49.4750
49.375
197.850
Utah
49.300
49.4375
49.475
49.5875
197.800
Florida
49.250
49.475
49.2375
49.475
197.4375
