UF Softball: Gators Blow Past Ospreys

Courtesy of University Athletic Association

BY HERB BROOKS

Florida returns to action at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium Saturday, Feb. 27, at 1 p.m. with the game scheduled to stream on the SEC Network+

The No. 6-ranked Florida softball team dispatched North Florida, 8-0 (5), Thursday evening at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.

The Gators (9-0) continued to excel at the plate as the team cranked out 11 hits in the run-rule victory over the Ospreys (1-5). Hannah Adams (3-for-4), Kendyl Lindaman (2-for-3), Charla Echols (2-for-4), Cheyenne Lindsey (2-for-3), and Julia Cottrill (2-for-2) all tallied multi-hit games in the effort.

In the circle, Natalie Lugo (2-0) and Rylee Trlicek combined for the two-hit shutout of UNF. Lugo only allowed four Ospreys to reach base as she gave up a pair of hits and two walks through 4.0 innings of work.

The shutout is the fifth of the season in just nine games played for the Gators.

Offensively, Cottrill put Florida on the scoreboard first when she plated Adams in the top of the 1^st inning of play with an RBI single and Echols came around to score from third on an error to give Florida an early 2-0 lead.

In the 2^nd inning of play, Lindaman extended the Gators’ lead out to 3-0 when she roped an RBI double down the right field line to score Adams from first base.

Lindaman pushed the lead out even further to 4-0 in the 4^th inning with her second RBI double of the game that scored Lindsey, who reached with a one-out single.

Florida’s bats put the game away in the 5th inning, scoring four runs on three hits. With the bases loaded and two outs, Echols ended the contest with her RBI single to center field.

Notable Notes

• The Gators improved to 11-0 all-time against the Ospreys, and the 8-0 win is the fifth time that Florida has run-ruled UNF in the series.
  • It’s tied for the third largest margin of victory over UNF in the series ever.
  • This is also the seventh shutout victory in the all-time series.
• The shutout tonight is the fifth of the season in nine games played, which is tied for the nation’s second-most.
  • Oklahoma State – 6
  • Florida – 5
  • Virginia Tech – 5
  • Southern Mississippi – 5
• Florida hit three doubles tonight and now has 22 on the season, which ranks tied for third nationally.
  • Kentucky – 23
  • Missouri – 23
  • Iowa State – 22
  • Florida – 22
• Kendyl Lindaman went 2-for-3 in tonight’s game with a pair of RBIs and two doubles. She also extended her hit streak out to five games.
• Hannah Adams, Charla Echols, Julia Cottrill, Cheyenne Lindsey, and Lindaman all turned in multi-hit games this evening.
  • Adams leads the team with six multi-hit games through the first nine games of the season, while Echols has five, Lindaman and Lindsey have three, and Cotrill has two.
• Florida has posted 10 or more hits in five of the first nine games played this season and holds a team batting average of .357 (84-of-235).
• The Florida pitching staff limited the Ospreys to just two hits tonight and has not allowed more than five hits in a game to an opponent.
  • The staff has a combined 0.86 ERA and has held opponents to a .148 batting average.