Miami's Comeback Falls Short as Florida Erupts for 22 Runs and Hurricane Pitchers Walk Nine, Allow 7 Home Runs

The Miami Hurricanes baseball team has a tough road ahead. After battling back from an early 6-1 deficit to tie regional game number 2 in Gainesville vs. No. 8 national seed Florida, fielding and relief pitching were the team’s undoing. Yes, the same areas that have caused issues all season. Miami made four errors overall, and the team allowed seven runs in the sixth with four walks and a hit by pitch in the inning … and seven more runs in the eighth with the Gators hitting five homers in one inning. Three of those were back-to-back-to-back.

Add up all the damage and it was a 22-10 final score with UM allowing nine walks and three HBP and with UF hitting seven homers.

“Only four of those first 15 runs were earned,” coach J.D. Arteaga said afterward. “That’s a good team. Can’t give them extra outs. Four errors not counting the popups we didn’t catch that weren’t errors. … Our defense has been kind of our Achilles’ heel all season (most errors in ACC). Just have to play better defense.

“We never quit, kept making a game out of it there till the eighth inning.”

Now Miami faces an elimination game against Troy on Sunday afternoon. Win that and the Canes need to beat Florida again twice to advance.

“We backed ourselves into a corner, have to play a lot of baseball,” Arteaga said. “Like I told the team, `Win we keep playing. Lose we go home and the season’s over. It’s the situation we put ourselves in and we have to figure it out tomorrow.”

Jake Ogden started the high-intensity rivalry regional matchup with a solo shot to deep right-center field to put the Hurricanes out in front, 1-0. This marks the second time this season that Miami opened a game with Ogden fireworks, the first coming in Miami’s win over the UCF Knights baseball team on March 11.

Max Galvin then followed with a sliding double, then Derek Williams got on by a hit by pitch. After an Alex Sosa infield popup, the Gators turned a crucial double play to bring momentum to the home crowd quickly.

Florida carried that momentum into the bottom of the inning, putting up six runs off five hits and capitalizing on two Miami errors. 

“Errors are going to happen,” Arteaga said. “It just snowballed on us a little bit.”

After Kyle Jones was hit by a pitch to open the frame, Brendan Lawson lined a single to center to put runners on the corners. An infield throwing error by Miami shortstop Vance Sheahan allowed Blake Cyr to reach safely while Jones crossed the plate to tie the game at one.

The Gators continued their offensive attack with a sacrifice fly from Ethan Surowiec that brought home Lawson, before Caden McDonald punched a single into left field to keep the inning alive. Following another Miami error on a dropped foul ball from third baseman Gabriel Milano, Karson Bowen ripped an RBI single to score Cyr and extend Florida’s advantage to 3-1.

With two outs, Cade Kurland delivered the big blow of the inning, launching a three-run homer down the left field line to cap the six-run outburst and give Florida a 6-1 lead after the first, ending starter AJ Ciscar’s night early.

“Not the way you draw it up, starting pitcher doesn’t get out of the first inning,” Arteaga said. “Ball was up, threw a lot of pitches over the middle.”

But Miami clawed back in the top of the third, scoring three two-out runs to try to keep up with the Gators. After two quick outs, Max Galvin and Derek Williams notched back-to-back singles to extend the inning. Alex Sosa then stepped up to the plate and delivered, on a 1-1 count, an RBI double to bring in Galvin and move the score to 6-2. Freshman Alonzo Alvarez continued his electric postseason with a two-RBI single up the middle to close in on Florida’s lead, 6-4.

The Gator bats remained hot, and in the third, Bowen returned to the plate and launched a solo homer to give Florida an insurance run and bumping the score to 7-4.

The shootout continued in the middle innings as Miami registered two runs to make it a one-run ballgame. Milano opened the frame with a single to center field and moved into scoring position on a wild pitch before Vance Sheahan lined an RBI single back up the middle to plate Milano and cut the deficit to 7-5.

Florida made a pitching change to take out Aidan King after three innings.

“That’s a good pitcher they started,” Arteaga said. “A lot of guys swung the bat well.”

The Hurricanes continued to pressure the Gators as Fabio Peralta dropped down a bunt single and Ogden followed with another bunt single down the third-base line to load the bases with nobody out. Max Galvin then reached on a fielder’s choice, but Florida notched the force out at the plate for the inning’s first out.

Following a strikeout, Miami added another run when a wild pitch allowed Peralta to score from third while Galvin and Ogden advanced into scoring position, trimming Florida’s lead to 7-6.

Miami continued its comeback effort in the top of the fifth, plating two runs to even the game at eight and erasing its original five-run deficit. Alvarez started the rally with a single through the left side before Dylan Dubovik followed with a base hit to left field to put two runners aboard with nobody out.

After a strikeout, Sheahan delivered again for the Hurricanes, lining a single to left field to load the bases with one out. Peralta then worked a bases-loaded walk to bring home Alvarez to make it a one-run game once more.

Moments later, Ogden reached on a fielder’s choice to shortstop, allowing Dubovik to score the tying run while Peralta was retired at second base. Miami threatened for more, but Florida escaped the inning with the game tied heading into the bottom of the fifth.

“I was not surprised (we came back),” Arteaga said. “We’re not going to give up, are going to keep fighting no matter what the score is and what’s going on.”

Florida broke the 8-8 tie with a crooked number in the bottom of the sixth, on more Miami errors to score seven runs. The Gators loaded the bases before Bowen drew a bases-loaded walk to force home Jones and give Florida a 9-8 lead. Moments later, Ashton Stripling worked another RBI walk to bring home Cyr and extend the advantage to two. With the pressure mounting, Kurland reached on a throwing error by Sheahan, allowing McDonald to score while the inning continued to unravel for Miami.

Florida added another run on a wild pitch that brought home Bowen before Jones delivered the biggest hit of the inning, ripping a three-run double to right field to plate three unearned runs and cap the seven-run frame. The Gators sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning and surged in front 15-8 heading into the seventh.

The Hurricanes notched two RBI singles to move the score to 15-10 in the top of the eighth, but Florida responded with another long ball from Kurland, bumping the score to 16-10.

“We know what kind of team we are,” Galvin said. “We’re a hitting team. If we play clean defense then we have a really good shot to win. We just need to keep our head in the game and make a routine play.”

The Gators pulled away again in the eighth, tallying five home runs to seal the deal.

“You have to play good, clean baseball, play hard,” Arteaga said. “At no time today did we quit.”

Miami now faces Troy at 12 p.m. eastern time in an elimination game. Live coverage will be provided on ESPN+ and WVUM 90.5 FM. Arteaga said No. 3 starter Lazaro Collera (4-3, 4.95 ERA) will start vs. the Trojans.

“I feel like this team has had some losses and we immediately bounced back,” Galvin said. “What’s done is done, and all of our focus is on tomorrow. It comes down to going out there and doing it, just having the stones to go out there and make every play and have good at bats and compete.”