Getting outhit 11-5 and stranding 12 runners on base normally isn’t a recipe for winning postseason baseball games.
But the No. 13 Gators capitalized on their scoring opportunities more than Kentucky did. The Wildcats stranded 14 runners on base and struck out 11 times.
The clutch pitching by UF’s trio of Tommy Mace, Trey Van Der Weide and Jack Leftwich combined with a couple of clutch hits by the Gators’ offense and two costly errors by Kentucky’s defense to allow Florida to sneak past Kentucky 4-1 in their SEC Tournament opening round, single-elimination game on Tuesday afternoon in Hoover, Alabama.