Florida baseball blows comeback against FSU in grand fashion

Just when something seemed to go the right way for Florida baseball, the Gators collapsed in the bottom of the ninth Tuesday night against Florida State, falling 8-4 on a walk-off grand slam.

Florida didn't deserve to win the game after recording one hit — a Ty Evans single — through the first eight innings of the contest, but a two-out, pinch-hit RBI double from Landon Stripling in the ninth gave the Gators life. Hayden Yost singled in Ashton Wilson, who pinch ran for Stripling, to give the Orange and Blue a 4-3 lead, and Kevin O'Sullivan's squad sat three outs away from clinching the season series against their in-state rival.

Alex Philpott, Florida's closer, never recorded one out in the ninth, though. After striking out the side and putting together a virtually unhittable eighth inning, Philpott could not find the strike zone in the final frame. He sandwiched a hit batter with two walks, loading the bases, and Gage Harrelson drove in the tying run with an infield single to second base that Cade Kurland was late to and bobbled.

With the game in the balance, Alex Lodise stepped up to the plate a home run shy of the cycle. Florida brought left fielder Blake Cyr into the infield, hoping to induce a ground ball and play at home. Instead, Lodise hit a no-doubter to combine three of baseball's most magical feats — the cycle, a grand slam and a walk-off.

From bad to worse

Florida has suffered a devastating series of losses recently, but this might be the worst of them all. The Gators had chances to beat Tennessee in all three games of the series sweep two weekends ago, and the Georgia sweep this weekend came at the hands of a bitter school rival. Tuesday's defeat gave Florida a taste of both in one fell swoop — swing?

The silver lining here is that Florida won the series opener two weeks ago in Tallahasee. Tuesday's game was the neutral site leg of the annual three-game midweek series between the two Sunshine State powerhouses. The Gators get another chance to win the series in two more weeks, on April 8, in Gainesville.

Two more weekend series — at Ole Miss this weekend and against Vanderbilt the next — and a midweek game against North Florida lie between now and then. The only time the Gators will be favored over these next nine games is when the Ospreys visit town.

Something has to change

Something has to change if this club is going to make another trip to Omaha. Florida's pitching staff is in shambles. Liam Peterson is dealing with an injury (soreness), and Pierce Coppola is still looking to make his way back to the mound. Jake Clemente wasn't sharp this weekend against Georgia, and Aidan King can only do so much as a freshman in the SEC.

Florida tried out several arms on Tuesday, including Clemente out of the bullpen. Some worked out, and some didn't. McCall Biemiller got the start and delivered two innings of one-run ball, allowing three hits and two walks over 11 batters faced. Niko Janssens came out after a leadoff base hit in the third, induced a double play and struck out Drew Faurot for a clean frame, but he walked the leadoff man in the fourth and gave up a two-run shot to Brody DeLamiellure.

Another base hit brought in Caden McDonald for Janssens. McDonald was the best of the bunch, striking out four of the six batters he faced. An error and flyout ended up being harmless, but the former led to Luke McNeillie taking over for the final out of the fifth. McNeillie was also sharp, striking out two in the sixth, and Clemente also notched a pair of strikeouts, albeit with a Lodise triple mixed in during the seventh.

It wasn't a horrible night for the bullpen, except for the ninth, but Florida has managed to waste quality performances far too often this season. Scoring two runs on walks was a gift that kept the Gators in the game, but the top seven going 0-for-22 is an atrocious offensive performance.

Don't lose faith... yet

It's hard to see things turning around before Thursday, when Florida starts its three-game set with No. 15 Ole Miss, but it's never wise to count an O'Sullivan-led team out of the race before the midway point of the season. Injuries have played a role in this collapse, but Florida has played so poorly that the excuse no longer plays. Getting Coppola and Peterson should lighten the burden, but the offense has to figure things out, too.

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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida Gators baseball falls to FSU Seminoles in Jacksonville

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