This might be the year Miami breaks loose from the Gators’ grip.
After three consecutive seasons of being dominated by Florida, the Hurricanes opened their weekend series at McKethan Stadium with a 3-2 victory Friday night.
Miami first baseman David Thompson drove in the winning run with an RBI single up the middle with two outs in the top of the ninth to snap the Hurricanes’ 11-game losing streak against the Gators.
“We’ve been reading about it and people have been talking about it,” Miami coach Jim Morris said of his team’s struggles against UF. “It’s been tough. It’s a load off our back right there. Now we need to win the series.”
The Hurricanes have opened their season with 10 consecutive wins, while Florida (3-7) lost for the sixth time in a row. It’s UF’s longest losing streak since 2006.
The Gators got a solid outing from Okeechobee’s Jonathon Crawford, but could not capitalize on it. Miami starter Chris Diaz (2-0) countered with seven shutout innings, giving up eight hits.
“He threw strikes, had good movement, hit his spots and kept us off-balance,” Florida sophomore Justin Shafer said of Diaz.
Crawford gave up two earned runs on eight hits in six innings. He struck out three, walked three and hit a batter.
Crawford escaped trouble throughout the game, with the exception of the fourth inning. Miami’s Brad Fiegler led off with a double, and Alex San Juan drove him in with a towering home run to left field.
Florida tied the game during a bizarre sequence in the eighth inning. After Vickash Ramjit’s RBI single to left, he was at second base with two outs for pinch-hitter Christian Dicks. Dicks hit a high fly to shortstop Brandon Lopez, who dropped it, allowing Ramjit to score.
“It was a crazy game in the eighth, but give our guys credit for coming back in the ninth and winning it,” Morris said.
Lopez, a true freshman, had three hits, but committed three fielding errors and made a major mistake on the bases that cost Miami an out.
Florida freshman Jay Carmichael kept the game in reach with an exceptional performance out of the bullpen. He came on in the seventh inning and retired the first eight batters he faced, striking out five of them.
His only stumble was in the ninth, when he gave up back-to-back singles to Chantz Mack and Thompson. Mack stole second before scoring on Thompson’s game winner.
About the Author
