Kevin O’Sullivan turned to a freshman as his Florida Gators opened the NCAA Tournament and it paid off in a 5-2 win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
“Some people have kind of asked the question, too, that it felt like we were pitching off and saving Cags (Jac Caglianone),” O’Sullivan said after the Gators’ win. “We weren’t saving Cags. I felt like Liam (Peterson) had earned the opportunity to go out there and start and he’d been our most consistent starter the last four or five weeks. It’s really that simple.”
Peterson had pitched to a 2.32 ERA over his last five outings heading into postseason play. The freshman was sharp when the Gators needed him to be on Saturday.
Florida jumped on the board early and never trailed. Sophomore second baseman Cade Kurland homered to start the game. Peterson would give up a run in the bottom of the inning but the Gators’ offense would pick him up in the third.
Caglianone doubled to start the frame — it would be the last pitch he saw, drawing three intentional walks the rest of the afternoon. Tyler Shelnut singled to third base and Ashton Wilson doubled both of them home. It was the second double of the game for Wilson, who ended with a 4-5 afternoon including three double and a home run.
“We go in with a plan and we just do our best to stick to the plan,” Wilson said. “I just feel like we did that pretty well. It was simple. Just attack because he throws a lot of strikes and we did that well.”
A transfer from Charleston Southern, Wilson played a bench role for the Gators until injuries to Ty Evans and Hayden Yost made Wilson an every day write in on the lineup card.
“I would get a pinch hit every once in a while and then I got a couple at Kentucky that I did ok in. Georgia I got the start and my teammates just really picked me up the whole time, gave me all the confidence in the world, that yeah, I should be starting. It kind of just went on from there.”
Players of the Game
Liam Peterson: 5.1 IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 3BB, 7K, Win
Cade Kurland: 2-5, 2 RBI, HR
Ashton Wilson: 4-5, 3 2B, HR
Brandon Neely: 2.1 IP, 3H, 1BB, 1K, Save
Notes
- Friday’s official attendance was 4,709.
- Dating back to April 19, Peterson has made six appearances (five starts) and is 2-0 with a 2.55 ERA in 24 2/3 innings.
- Caglianone extended his on-base streak to 42-straight contests.
- Kurland hit a leadoff home run to left-center for his 14th long ball of the campaign and first of the 2024 postseason.
- Wilson finished 4-for-5 with career highs in hits, doubles (three) and total bases (10) while launching his first homer as a Gator.
- Neely nailed down his third save of the season.
- Kurland and Wilson both drove in two runs apiece.
- Florida’s scoring streak of 135 consecutive games is the third-longest in program history (May 27, 2022-present).
- The Gators are 130-85 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
- Florida is now 2-0 all-time vs. Nebraska (all neutral-site).
Next up for the Florida Gators
Florida will play the winner of Oklahoma State and Niagara on Saturday. The Gators will be the home team if the Cowboys win and a coin flip will decide home/away if Niagara wins, due to NCAA Tournament rules.
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