No. 2 Florida Gators softball on Sunday advanced to Super Regional play for the sixth time in the last seven seasons after defeating the South Florida Bulls 2-0 in the finals of the Gainesville Regional round of the 2013 NCAA Tournament.

Despite serving as hosts for the regionals, Florida was the road team in Sunday’s final game. The Gators (55-7) went hitless for 6.1 innings at Pressly Softball Stadium in Gainesville, FL, but made Bulls pitcher Sara Nevins work hard in the fourth inning. Florida scored two runs on four walks and a hit by pitch.

Junior right-handed pitcher Hannah Rogers (7.0 IP, 3 H, 5 K) earned the victory, her second of the weekend against USF, by tossing a complete game shutout on Sunday. Rogers (5.0 IP, H, R, 4 BB, 6 K) also helped UF pick up a dominant 11-1 win on Saturday in a five-inning run-ruled affair.

Sophomore designated player Lauren Haeger (2/2, HR, 7 RBI, R) led the way for the Gators on Saturday, tying the school’s single-game RBI record in the process.

Sophomore righty Alyssa Bache (7.0 IP, 2 H, R, BB, 4 K) took the mound for Friday’s regional opener against the Hampton Pirates and looked strong despite giving up a run in the top of the first. She had plenty of support from Florida’s hitters with Haeger (2/3, 2 RBI, BB) and senior right fielder Kelsey Horton (2/4, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R) each plating two runs. The Gators easily won 7-1.

As the No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, Florida the will host UAB in the best-of-three Super Regional in Gainesville beginning on May 23. The Gators return to Super Regional action for the first time since 2011 after being upset during the 2012 Gainesville Regional by the Bulls.

Tags: Alyssa Bache, Gainesville Regional, Hannah Rogers, Kelsey Horton, Lauren Haeger, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Pressly Softball Stadium, softball, Super Regional

Florida women’s basketball was facing elimination from the 2013 Women’s NIT while Gators softball was about to fall to a heated rival when a late-game swish of the net and an extra-inning crack of the bat turned the fortunes of the respective teams in a pair of nail-biter situations Wednesday evening.

Though Florida women’s basketball did not receive an invitation to the NCAA Tournament, the Gators have been fighting for their lives on the road. After taking down Florida International 75-68 in first-round action last Thursday, UF earned a dominant 85-53 victory over Winthrop on Monday to advance to the WNIT round of 16.

On Wednesday, the Gators (21-14) took on the Charlotte 49ers (26-6) and were engaged in an absolute dogfight. Florida coughed up its lead with less than six minutes to play and found itself in a four-point hole with possession and 1:05 remaining.

Just 13 seconds into the possession, freshman guard January Miller drained a three-pointer with 52 seconds left to cut the Gators’ deficit to one. On the ensuing possession, freshman forward Christin Mercer swiped the ball from Charlotte’s Ny Hammonds and junior G Jaterra Bonds got fouled on a shot attempt.

At the line with a chance to go ahead by a point with 20 seconds remaining, Bonds made the first free throw but missed the second. Suddenly, senior F Jennifer George swooped in for the rebound and head coach Amanda Butler called a 30-second timeout with 15.6 seconds remaining.

Continue Reading » One night, two late game-winners for Gators

Tags: Amanda Butler, Brianna Little, Charlotte 49ers, Christin Mercer, Florida State Seminoles, Hannah Rogers, January Miller, Jaterra Bonds, Jessica Damico, Lauren Haeger, Pressly Softball Stadium, softball, Tim Walton, WNIT, women's basketball

1 » No. 2 Florida Gators women’s tennis (3-1) lost its first match in more than a year as the No. 4 Duke Blue Devils (7-1) snapped the visitors’ 25-match winning streak (which dated back to Feb. 12, 2012) with a 4-0 sweep on Sunday in Durham, NC. Though the duo of senior Lauren Embree and junior Sofie Oyen took down Duke’s No. 7-ranked team of Mary Clayton and Ester Goldfeld 8-4, Florida eventually lost the doubles point when junior Alex Cercone/freshman Brianna Morgan lost a 6-4 lead and fell 7-6(7-3) in the third doubles match. The Gators responded by winning the first set on five-of-six singles courts. However, No. 9 Oyen was upset by No. 45 Goldfeld (6-4, 7-5) to put the Blue Devils up 3-0 and Duke picked up one additional singles win despite UF leading in all three of the matches that did not finish. Florida, which was pushed out of the top national ranking at the start of the week by new No. 1 North Carolina, will be in Chapel Hill, NC to face UNC on Monday at 2 p.m.

2 » No. 3 Gators lacrosse (3-0) has won its first three matches of the season for the first time in program history after taking down the High Point Panthers (1-1) on Sunday in High Point, NC. Florida, which picked up a 13-7 victory, was led by three goals apiece from sophomore midfielder Shannon Gilroy and senior attacker Caroline Chesterman. Senior A Kitty Cullen and sophomore M Nicole Graziano added two goals each. UF will host Stony Brook in the program’s home opener on Wednesday.

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Tags: Alex Cercone, Alyssa Bache, Brianna Morgan, Bridget Sloan, Caroline Chesterman, Charleston Southern Buccaneers, Duke Blue Devils, Georgia Gym Dogs, gymnastics, Hannah Rogers, High Point Panthers, Kelsey Stewart, Kirsti Merritt, Kitty Cullen, lacrosse, Lauren Embree, Lauren Haeger, Lipton Invitational, Nicole Graziano, Pressly Softball Stadium, Savannah State Tigers, Shannon Gilroy, Sofie Oyen, softball, Stegeman Coliseum, tennis, UNC-Wilmington Seahawks, Western Carolina Catamounts

One day after suffering emotional turmoil both on and off the field, No. 5 Florida Gators softball kept their national championship hopes alive by taking down the Central Florida Knights and Florida Gulf Coast Eagles in consecutive games on Saturday in the Gainesville Regional at Pressly Softball Stadium in Gainesville, FL.

Florida (48-12) eliminated Central Florida (39-19) in the afternoon contest and topped Florida Gulf Coast (39-23) in the evening game, winning 7-1 and 6-2 respectively, thanks to solid offensive efforts and efficient pitching performances.

Freshman first baseman/right-handed pitcher Lauren Haeger got it done at the plate and on the mound for the Gators, smacking two home runs and tossing the final two innings of the first game before starting the second game on the hill and smacking her third bomb of the day in the latter contest. Haeger combined to go 4/7 with three homers, four RBIs, three runs and two walks and also tossed 7.0 innings giving up three earned runs on six hits with four walks and three strikeouts while picking up her 15th victory.

Florida freshman left fielder Briana Little (2/4, 2 RBI, R) was solid against UCF as was sophomore RHP Hannah Rogers, who improved to 28-7 after striking out five while giving up just four hits and one walk in 5.0 innings.

Rogers returned in the evening game to close out FGCU, allowing one hit and striking out a batter in two innings of work. The Gators also received an offensive boost from junior catcher Kelsey Horton (3/4, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R), who smacked two homers of her own and had a big smile on her face both times she crossed the plate.

Senior center fielder Michelle Moultrie, who also threw out a runner at the plate to save a run, went 4/4 with two runs scored in the second game

Florida will take on South Florida on Sunday at 1 p.m. in the finals of the Gainesville Regional. UF will have to defeat USF twice in order to move on to the Super Regional round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Tags: Briana Little, Central Florida Knights, Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, Gainesville Regional, Hannah Rogers, Kelsey Horton, Lauren Haeger, Michelle Moultrie, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Pressly Softball Stadium, softball

Friday was a rough day for No. 5 Florida Gators softball, which not only lost 2-1 to the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles in the second game of the 2012 NCAA Gainesville Regional at Pressly Softball Stadium but did so without three of their star players.

Prior to the game, head coach Tim Walton announced that junior shortstop Cheyenne Coyle, sophomore outfielder Kasey Fagan and freshman third baseman Sami Fagan were suspended for undisclosed reasons. He said following the contest that the situation is being handled internally but that the trio is suspended indefinitely for the remainder of the season and could be kicked off the team permanently.

More definitive on the subject was Kevin Fagan, the father of Kasey and Sami, who told the Ocala Star-Banner the three players are no longer with the team and are “free to go anywhere they want.” He added that “an altercation on the team…[left] the team sort of divided and Walton felt like it was in his best interest to get rid of those three.”

It was not all bad news for Florida before the game, however, as the Gators also learned junior catcher Brittany Schutte would return after missing more than two months of action with a broken jaw. Schutte went 0/2 with a walk.

FGCU (38-22) got on the board first as Florida (46-12) sophomore right-handed pitcher Hannah Rogers gave up a solo home run in the top of the second. The Gators tied things up in the bottom of the next inning, rallying to score a run brought home by a single from freshman first baseman Lauren Haeger (2/3, RBI).

The Gators and Eagles stayed tied at 1-1 for the next two innings, but Florida Gulf Coast went back on top in the sixth as Rogers (27-7, 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 8 K) coughed up her second solo homer of the game. Florida was unable to answer and lost the game, which dropped them into the loser’s bracket of their own regional.

UF has lost seven of their last 11 games and now must win four-straight contests to advance to the Super Regional portion of the 2012 NCAA Tournament. Florida will face Central Florida at 3:30 p.m. in an elimination game for the opportunity to advance to a second elimination game immediately following the contest at 6 p.m.

Tags: Brittany Schutte, Cheyenne Coyle, Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, Gainesville Regional, Hannah Rogers, Kasey Fagan, Lauren Haeger, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Pressly Softball Stadium, Sami Fagan, softball, Tim Walton

1 » Falling to 8-8 in their last 16 games dating back to March 30, No. 2/5 Florida Gators baseball (31-10) was edged 5-3 by the South Florida Bulls (28-14) at McKethan Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday. Florida fell behind 2-0 in the top of the second after a fielding error by sophomore third baseman Cody Dent allowed the inning to continue and two runs to eventually score. Freshman right-hander Johnny Magliozzi (4.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 4 K) was replaced by sophomore left-hander Daniel Gibson in the fifth but things did not get any better for the Gators on the mound. Gibson gave up solo homer in the sixth, but Florida immediately answered with a pair of dingers from juniors shortstop Nolan Fontana (2/5, HR, RBI, R) and catcher Mike Zunino (2/5, HR, 2 RBI, R) to tie the game 3-3. However, Gibson (1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB) allowed a lead-off walk in the seventh that eventually scored and registered as the game-winning run. USF added another bomb in the top of the eighth to increase their lead to two runs and UF faltered late offensively by stranding six runners on base over the final three innings (Zunino grounded out with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth).

2 » No. 2/4 Gators softball (42-6, 19-3 SEC) split a Tuesday doubleheader with the LSU Tigers (33-16, 14-8 SEC), winning the afternoon contest 2-1 in eight innings before dropping the evening game 1-0. Sophomore RHP Hannah Rogers (25-3, 8.0 IP, 4 H, ER, 2 BB, 5 K) went the distance in the extra innings affair that saw Florida fight tooth and nail for a victory. The Gators trailed 1-0 after Rogers allowed a run to score in the top of the seventh but evened things out in the bottom frame when junior right fielder Ensley Gammel (1/3, HR, RBI, R) homered to right. Rogers then forced three ground balls in the eighth with her defense completing a 1-6-3 double play to end the inning and give the offense another shot. Senior center fielder Michelle Moultrie (2/4, RBI) responded to the opportunity, doubling down the left field line to knock in the game-winning run. The latter contest was a true pitchers’ duel with freshman RHP Lauren Haeger (12-3, 7.0 IP, 6 H, ER, 3 BB, 9 K) and LSU’s Brittany Mack (7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 8 K) both tossing complete games. The Tigers scored after a triple was driven home in the second and the Gators’ offense stalled just like the baseball team’s did down the stretch by stranding five runners on base over the final two innings.

Tags: baseball, Cody Dent, Daniel Gibson, Ensley Gammel, Hannah Rogers, Johnny Magliozzi, Lauren Haeger, LSU Tigers, McKethan Stadium, Michelle Moultrie, Mike Zunino, Nolan Fontana, Pressly Softball Stadium, softball, South Florida Bulls

No. 3 Florida Gators softball (38-5, 18-2 SEC) triumphed over the weekend, outscoring the Auburn Tigers (26-18, 5-14 SEC) 11-5 over three games to earn a hard-fought series sweep at Pressly Softball Stadium in in Gainesville, FL.

Strong efforts from senior center fielder Michelle Moultrieand freshman right-handed pitcher/first baseman Lauren Haeger propelled Florida. Moultrie combined to go 2/9 with a home run, three RBIs, two runs and a stolen base, while Haeger excelled both on the mound and at the plate (3/8, HR, 2 RBI, R, 2 BB). She was outstanding on the hill Saturday, improving to 11-2 while allowing just one earned run on two hits and a walk with 11 strikeouts in a complete game effort.

The Gators triumphed 3-2 on Friday, fighting back from a 2-1 deficit through 3.5 innings to pull out the victory. Florida won 3-1 behind Haeger’s solid pitching on Saturday and used a four-run fifth on Sunday to cap the weekend with a 5-2 win.

Sophomore RHP Hannah Rogers (22-3) earned bookend victories with nearly identical outings on Friday and Sunday, tossing two complete games while combining to give up four earned runs on 11 hits with six walks and 11 strikeouts.

Florida has now earned sweeps in consecutive weekends and has four more series to play before postseason action begins in early May. UF will host Florida International in a three-game series including a doubleheader on April 20 and a third game on April 21.

Tags: Auburn Tigers, Hannah Rogers, Lauren Haeger, Michelle Moultrie, Pressly Softball Stadium, softball

1 » Former Florida Gators forward/center Vernon Macklin was recently set down to the NBA Development League for no other reason than that the Detroit Pistons wanted to see him get some in-game action rather than sit stationary on the end of the team’s bench during NBA games. According to M Live, Macklin has been playing for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants and has been dominating. In his first five games with the team, Macklin is averaging 16.6 points and 17.2 rebounds (10.6 on the defensive glass) in more than 36 minutes a game. He will remain with the team through April 7 before returning to the Pistons. “He’s playing with a lot of energy and effort. He’s gotten better each and every game,” Detroit coach Lawrence Frank said. “It’s great for him to get that experience. We see continued development. We see progress in Vernon.”

2 » No. 4 Florida lacrosse (11-2) hit two major milestones on Wednesday, recording their first-ever shutout while registering the highest goal total in school history in a 29-0 beat down of the Fresno State Bulldogs (2-6) at Donald R. Dizney Stadium in Gainesville, FL. Freshman midfielder Nicole Graziano scored a game-high and career-high six goals on seven shots, and freshman attacker Nora Barry joined her in dominating on offense with five goals on six shots. The duo also combined for six ground balls and six draw controls in the contest. Junior As Ashley Bruns and Gabi Wiegand combined for six goals and three assists with Bruns becoming the first player in team history to eclipse 200 career goals. In addition to scoring the most goal sand allowing the fewest in team history, the Gators set or tied a number of other records. Florida had the most points (41), assists (12) and draw controls (24) in team history, tied their records for shots (44), first-half points (17) and second-half points (12) and also committed a record five fouls, the fewest in team history. The Gators accomplished all of this without Juniors A Kitty Cullen and M Brittany Dashiell, two of the team’s leading scorers.

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Tags: Ashley Bruns, Brittany Dashiell, Chris Leak, D1 Sports Training, Denver Broncos, Detroit Pistons, Dizney Stadium, Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Fresno State Bulldogs, Gabi Wiegand, Kitty Cullen, lacrosse, Lauren Haeger, Marcus Gilbert, Maurkice Pouncey, NBA, NBA D-League, NFL, Nicole Graziano, Nora Barry, Pittsburgh Steelers, Pressly Softball Stadium, SEC, softball, South Florida Bulls, Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer, Vernon Macklin