GAINESVILLE, Fla.? No. 27 Kentucky rallied valiantly from a 4-2 deficit against Florida in the top of the ninth inning Sunday, but was unable to complete the comeback, falling 5-4 at Alfred A. McKethan Stadium.
The Wildcats (27-12-1, 7-10-1 Southeastern Conference) were playing against the clock, as no inning was permitted to start after 2:15 p.m. EDT due to Kentucky?s travel plans. Leadoff hitter Mike Brown stepped into the batter?s box at 2:14 p.m. EDT to give the Wildcats one last chance at the plate.
Brown opened the inning by roping a double to right field and scored on a single up the middle by Keenan Wiley. Wiley advanced to second on a passed ball and reached third after a fly out by Sawyer Carroll. After Sean Coughlin struck out, Brian Spear singled to center field to drive in Wiley and knot the score at 4, giving the Wildcats hope for their second tie of the season.
Jon Townsend started Florida?s (23-20, 10-8 SEC) half of the ninth frame with a single up the middle. Jared Kubin and Cody Neer each followed with singles to load the bases for the Gators with one out. Pinch hitter Chris Petrie, inserted into the lineup for Jonathan Pigott, sent a 1-1 pitch into right-center field to drive home pinch runner Avery Barnes and give Florida the win and the series.
Wildcat starter Greg Dombrowski tossed 2 1/3 innings, allowing seven hits and two runs. Duran Ferguson relieved Dombrowski in a bases-loaded jam and worked two innings, allowing just one run and striking out three. Brock Baber pitched two strong innings, not allowing a run, but the Gators hit reliever James Paxton for three hits and a run in 1 2/3 frames of work. Dewayne Oxford (3-1) was credited with the loss after pitching the ninth inning and giving up the go-ahead run.
Wiley continued his success at the plate for Kentucky, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Brown and Carroll also recorded multi-hit games, as the top three batters in the order combined for seven of the Wildcats? 12 hits and each of UK?s four runs. Coughlin drove in his SEC-leading 55th RBI of the season in the seventh inning and Carroll extended his team-best hitting streak to seven games, knocking in his SEC-leading eighth double of the season.
Kentucky threatened in the first, as Wiley laid down a perfect one-out bunt single. Carroll followed with a double the right field line. Wiley attempted to score on the two-bagger, but a nice relay from Florida right fielder Brian Leclerc nailed Wiley at the plate.
Florida roughed up Dombrowski in the first inning, reaching on four consecutive singles and plating one run. Shortstop Cole Figueroa led off with a single and after loading the bases with two singles, Townsend ripped an RBI single to center field to give UF a 1-0 lead. Dombrowski worked out of the jam, forcing a ground out at the plate and a double play, to get out of the frame with minimal damage.
UF chased Dombrowski from the game in the third, as the junior preseason All-American surrendered three singles and hit a batter to allow one run to score and load the bases. Dombrowski was pulled in favor of Ferguson, who got the Wildcats out of the jam, striking out two batters to hold the Gators to a 2-0 advantage.
Florida added to its lead in the fifth, pushing across one run to go up 3-0. Leclerc doubled to lead off and after a ground out, Clayton Pisani drove in Leclerc with a double.
Kentucky got on the board in the sixth narrowing the lead to 3-1. Brown led off the frame with a double down the left line and came around to score on a Carroll single. Carroll?s RBI was his 50th of the season.
The Wildcats cut the lead to 3-2 in the seventh, loading the bases and coming up with just one run. After two quick outs from the bottom of the UK lineup, Brown walked and Wiley singled up the middle on consecutive at-bats. Carroll walked to load the bases and Coughlin walked in Brown.
The Gators added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth as catcher Hampton Tigner singled up the middle with two outs and scored on a two-out RBI single by Austin Pride to give Florida a 4-2 advantage.
Kentucky returns to action Wednesday when it plays host to intra-state rival Louisville at Cliff Hagan Stadium. First pitch is slated for 6:30 p.m. EDT and the game will be carried live on the Big Blue Sports Network (radio and television). Following the mid-week contest,the Wildcats play host to Georgia for a three-game series this weekend at Cliff Hagan Stadium.
