William & Mary Visits No. 1 Florida Baseball
Friday, February 24, 2012 | Baseball
After notching a pair of mid-week wins over Bethune-Cookman (8-6) and No. 19 UCF (8-0), No. 1 Florida (4-1) hosts William & Mary (2-2) of the Colonial Athletic Association for three games at McKethan Stadium from Friday-Sunday. The Tribe captured its season-opening series against Rhode Island (2-1, 2-1, 3-4) before falling at Virginia on Wednesday, 6-5 in 11 innings. Game times are at 7 p.m. on Friday, 4 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday and all three games will be carried on GatorVision Online and on WRUF SportsRadio 850.
Sophomore right-hander Jonathon Crawford (Okeechobee, Fla.) held No. 19 UCF (3-1) hitless for 4.1 innings in his collegiate starting debut and senior Preston Tucker (Tampa, Fla.) tied the school's career RBI record as the No. 1 Gators (4-1) had four pitchers combine on a six-hit, 8-0 victory on Wednesday night at McKethan Stadium. UF's first shutout of the season marked the first time that it held the Knights scoreless since a 10-0 win on April 12, 1977, and for only the second time in school history.
After pitching 3.2 innings as a freshman, Crawford (1-1) limited the Knights to a pair of singles over five shutout innings. He was followed to the mound by sophomore Daniel Gibson (Lutz, Fla.) (2.0 IP, 1 H), freshman Bobby Poyner (Wellington, Fla.) (1.0 IP, 1 H) and freshman Ryan Harris (Jupiter, Fla.) (1.0 IP, 2 H). Six of the Gators' 10 hits went for extra bases, including a homer and double by both senior Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) (2-for-3, two runs) and Tucker (2-for-4, two runs) and a pair of two-baggers by junior Mike Zunino (Cape Coral, Fla.) (3-for-4, two runs).
With a solo homer in the fifth inning on Wednesday night, Tucker matched Brad Wilkerson's school-record total of 214 RBI set between 1996-98. Over 203 career games entering the weekend, Tucker is hitting .335 in 793 at bats, with 266 hits, 214 RBI, 158 runs, 94 walks, 55 doubles and 44 homers. In his spectacular three-year career, Wilkerson played in 195 games and finished with a school-record career batting average of .381 in 699 at bats, with 266 hits, 239 runs (second at UF), 224 walks (school record), 214 RBI, 55 home runs (second at UF) and 50 doubles.
Florida's pitching staff registered a school-record 11 shutouts in 72 games last season. The whitewash of UCF was the team's first since downing Vanderbilt, 5-0, in the championship game of the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala., on May 29, 2011. UF's first shutout in '11 came in the third game last year, a 5-0 win over USF, and it also held Boston College scoreless in the fifth game by a 4-0 count.
Gator Bytes
*Dating back to last season, junior Mike Zunino enters the weekend series on a nine-game hitting streak in which he is 15-for-35 (.429) with nine runs and six RBI. His last game without a hit was a 0-for-3 showing in Florida's CWS opener against Texas on June 18, 2011. *Zunino has two hits in four-straight games and leads the Orange and Blue with a .474 (9-for-19) average.
*Now with 30 career round-trippers, Zunino sits in 14th place on the school's all-time list. His next big fly will put him in a tie with Josh Adams (2008-11), Greg Catalanotte (1998-99) and C.J. Smith (2002-04) for 11th.
*Freshman Casey Turgeon has started all five games at second base and boasts a five-game hitting streak (6-for-17, .353).
*Preston Tucker's next hit will move him into fifth on the school's all-time hit list, as his total of 266 hits is tied with Brad Wilkerson (1996-98). Jeff Corsaletti (273, 2002-05) is next up in fourth. In addition, Tucker's next double will tie Corsaletti (56) for third on the Gator chart.
*Senior Greg Larson has appeared in three of the Gators' five games this season, bringing him to 90 career appearances. He needs six more to match Josh Edmondson (2005-08) for fifth on the school's all-time chart.
*The Gators are 3-0 this year when opponents score first and are also 3-0 when out-hitting their foe.
*Junior Brian Johnson registered five strikeouts and yielded two hits in four scoreless frames last weekend.
*Junior Hudson Randall scattered five hits, permitted three runs over 5.2 innings and was not involved in the decision during the Gators' opener versus No. 16 Cal State Fullerton.
*All nine of sophomore Karsten Whitson's career wins have come at McKethan Stadium. The righty (1-0) worked five innings in his season debut last Saturday against CSF (5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 K).
*Junior Austin Maddox worked four shutout innings last Saturday for the club's first save of the year. He recorded five saves last season and his first came on April 10 at Mississippi State (3-1). The righty picked up the win over Bethune-Cookman for his first triumph since June 24, 2011, versus Vanderbilt at the NCAA College World Series.
*Taylor Gushue, named the SEC's Freshman of the Week on Monday, drew a Gator season-best three walks against UCF and is batting .308 (4-for-13) with four RBI and three runs.
*UF is 2-for-3 on the basepaths this season, as senior Tyler Thompson and Zunino each have a theft.
*Florida has two errors through five games for a .990 fielding percentage and has played error-free in three contests.
*All seven of Florida's home runs have been of the solo variety.
*The Gators used a total of 11 pitchers on the opening weekend, three of whom were freshmen - RHP Johnny Magliozzi, LHP Bobby Poyner and RHP Justin Shafer.
*Rookie right-hander Ryan Harris made his debut in the ninth inning against UCF and closed the contest with a pair of strikeouts to preserve the shutout.
*Florida is hitting .341 (43-for-126) against right-handers and .179 (7-for-39) versus lefties.
*Led by senior Daniel Pigott, who is 3-for-4 (.750), the Gators are 16-for-51 (.314) with runners in scoring position.
*Eleven of the team's 31 RBI this year have come with two out, two apiece by junior Nolan Fontana, Gushue, Johnson, Pigott and Turgeon.
*Only 11 of 45 leadoff batters have reached base against the UF pitching staff, good for a .244 clip.
*The Gators' most productive inning has been the seventh (seven runs) and the squad has scored six runs in both the second and third innings.
*Opponents are 0-for-5 with the bases loaded against the Gators, while UF is just 2-for-9 (.222) with the bags full.
*Sixteen of Florida's 50 hits this year have gone for extra bases (eight doubles, seven homers and a triple).
