The Kentucky Wildcats booked a spot in Omaha for the first time in program history thanks to “chaos.” Kentucky found a way to manufacture runs all season long, relying on little things like bunts, stolen bases, aggressive base running, and more to beat teams. As for the Florida Gators, who Kentucky faced in an elimination game Wednesday, they were built to mash.
On Wednesday in Omaha, mashing won out.
The Gators overwhelmed Kentucky 15-4 to eliminate the Wildcats and keep their title hopes alive for at least one more game.
Kentucky scratched out a run in the top of the first inning, thanks to a walk and then a stolen base from leadoff hitter Ryan Waldschmidt, and then an RBI single from DH Nick Lopez.
Their 1-0 lead did not last long.
Florida, with a revised lineup at the top that saw Jac Caglianone leading off for the first time in Omaha, put up a crooked number in the bottom of the inning, and a big one at that. The Gators put seven runs on the board, with the big blow a grand slam off the bat of designated hitter Brody Donay:
The Florida DH was just getting started.
A Donay single in the third gave the Gators two runners on base with just one out. Kentucky recorded the second out of the inning and then walked Caglianone to get to their No. 2 hitter, 2B Cade Kurland.
The 2B responded with a single to shallow center, advancing to second using a nifty slide to avoid the tag. Two runs scored on the single, giving Florida a 9-1 lead.
Kentucky started to chip away at the Gators’ lead, scoring a run in the fourth and then two more in the fifth on a two-run blast from Emilien Pitre. But the Gators’ potent lineup had another crooked number up their sleeve, as Florida hung five more runs on the board in the fifth inning.
Some of those runs came via the long ball, as Donay went yard again down the left-field line for a solo shot to start the fifth. The blast came off the bat at over 117 miles per hour, the highest exit velocity recorded at Omaha this postseason:
But the runs kept coming, starting with Florida executing some small ball of their own. After Donay blasted his second home run of the game, Caglianone walked, then advanced to second on a wild pitch. He then swiped third, getting a huge jump off pitcher Jackson Nove Nove as the lefty failed to even look in his direction.
While Kurland struck out looking on the pitch, Caglianone was then 90 feet away from an insurance run for the Gators.
So they went with a little safety squeeze, with shortstop — and cleanup hitter — Colby Shelton getting the bunt down perfectly to bring Caglianone home:
The Gators plated three more runs in the inning, one coming on a double from Luke Heyman and two more from a single off the bat of Ashton Wilson. By the time the inning came to a merciful end for the Wildcats, the Gators had a ten-run lead and could start thinking about taking on Texas A&M in the nightcap.
But they were not done, because Caglianone had some history to make:
The likely top-five selection in the upcoming MLB Draft launched a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth, for his 75th career home run at Florida. That put him atop the school’s all-time leader list, topping the mark set by Matt LaPorta during his time in Gainesville, who was in attendance to tip his hat to the new school leader.
By the time the final out was recorded, the Gators had hung 15 runs on the board, for the final score of 15-4.
They’ll look to keep their title dreams alive later tonight, as they take on Texas A&M. The Aggies have yet to lose in Omaha, and defeated Florida 3-2 in the opening game for both teams on Saturday.
We’ll see if the Gators needed to save some runs for tonight’s game in just a few hours.