GAINESVILLE, Fla. – No. 5/7 LSU rallied back for runs in the seventh and eighth innings to secure a 4-3 win over No. 10 Florida on Sunday at Pressly Stadium, evening the series.
LSU is 31-5 this season and 9-5 in the SEC. Florida moves to 33-6 and 8-3 in league play.
With the Tigers trailing 3-2 in the seventh inning, outfielder Ali Newland drew a leadoff walk, and Briggs moved her to second with her second sac hit of the game. Shortstop Taylor Pleasants grounded out to second but advanced Newland to third, setting up first baseman Raeleen Gutierrez’s second two-out RBI double of the game to tie the score 3-3. The Tigers’ defense turned their 20th double play of the season to force extras in the bottom of the inning.
In the eighth, with an LSU runner on first, catcher Maci Bergeron stepped to the plate, and on a full count with two outs, she roped a pitch to left field for her third hit of the game, putting runners on second and third. Third baseman Maddox McKee lobbed a ball to center field for a sacrifice fly to score the go-ahead run for the Fighting Tigers. In the bottom of the inning, Florida got a runner aboard with a single, but Berzon closed the door by striking out the next three batters, sealing the 4-3 win.
Relief pitcher Sydney Berzon (14-2) earned the win, working the final 3.2 innings of the game. Baerzon fanned seven batters, allowed one run on five hits, and walked one batter. Utility pitcher Kelley Lynch started the game and threw seven strikeouts, allowing three hits, two runs, and one walk in 4.1 innings. Berzon and Lynch combined for a team season-high 14 strikeouts.
Pitcher Keagan Rothrock (17-4) was charged the loss after allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with one strikeout in 2.0 innings in relief.
Bergeron matched a career-high with three hits, including two doubles and one RBI. Briggs set a season-high in hits after going 3-for-3 at the dish and scoring one run, and Gutierrez had two RBI doubles in the win, including the game-tying double to help force extra innings. LSU turned in its 13th game this season with 10 or more hits, including five in SEC games. The Tigers recorded a hit in all but one inning.
Bergeron put the Tigers on the board in the second frame with a two-out RBI double that scored outfielder McKenzie Redoutey, who drew a two-out walk. LSU’s lead increased to 2-0 after Gutierrez laced another two-out double to left field in the third.
Florida’s sacrifice fly in the fourth, followed by an RBI single in the fifth, tied the score 2-2. In the sixth stanza, utility player Brooke Barnard hit a two-out, pinch-hit, run-scoring double to put the Gators on top, 3-2. After the Gator’s final run, six out of the last eight batters were retired.
Up Next
The rubber match is set for 6 p.m. CT on Monday on SEC Network.
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