GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Gators managed only two runs and three hits Saturday, 24 hours after scoring only once and leaving 10 runners on base.

Three runs in two games is not usually a recipe for success, especially against Miami, one of Florida's biggest rivals.

So much for the norm. By the look of it, the No. 2-ranked Gators' starting pitching staff has a chance to be considered elite among the elite.

Brady Singer tossed 7 2/3 shutout innings on Saturday as the Gators blanked the Hurricanes 2-0 in front of an announced crowd of 6,160 at McKethan Stadium, the second-largest home crowd in the program's history.

Singer struck out a career-high 11, walked three and allowed five hits as UF shut out Miami for a second consecutive night. How rare is that? Well, UF and Miami have now played 248 games since their first meeting in 1940 and the Gators had never shut out the Hurricanes in back-to-back games until Saturday.

"Kind of a carbon copy of last night,'' Gators coach Kevin O'Sullivan said. "We had an unbelievable start by Brady. His fastball was special, 93-96 [mph] and [he was] throwing both sides of the plate. Got into a really good rhythm."

Singer was so good that Miami's offensive highlight was a pair of singles by 5-foot-7, 150-pound outfielder James Davison – one a popped up bunt behind the mound and the other an infield hit that deflected off Singer.

Davison stole second each time, first in the second inning and then in the fifth. He beat his chest and pumped his fists both times, drawing the attention of Singer.

"It was a little heated but that's how baseball is,'' UF third baseman Jonathan India said. "They're a great team. They want to come in and beat us and we want to beat them. It was a good atmosphere. I liked it."
 
With Davison at third and catcher Joe Gomez at first after his single in the fifth, Singer got Miami shortstop Brandon Gali to ground into an inning-ending double play.

Singer shared a few fist pumps aimed at the Miami dugout as he walked off the field. In the sixth, clearly still pumped from the previous inning, Singer struck out the side.

"It's Florida vs. Miami. It's a big series,'' he said. "I was just excited."

Singer's outing was spectacular for more than an extra dose of adrenaline, though. The sophomore right-hander from Eustis, Fla., was as equally impressive as Florida starter Alex Faedo was on Friday night in the Gators' 1-0 win.

Faedo pitched 8 2/3 scoreless innings and allowed only two hits before Frank Rubio came in got the final out for his first save. Rubio retired the Hurricanes in order in the ninth on Saturday for his second save.

When Singer gave way to reliever Nick Horvath with two outs in the eighth after 109 pitches, he received a standing ovation.

"He pounded the strike zone and showed some emotion,'' O'Sullivan said. "He's got a really good arm. He's come a long way since last year. This start should give him a heck of a lot of confidence."

Singer said a chat with Faedo prior to his start helped him lock in. He said he wanted to locate his fastball and stay down in the strike zone like Faedo did on Friday.

The plan worked.

"I just lived off the fastball and sunk it as much as I could,'' he said. "One of those days when everything felt right."

If the Gators continue to get the kind of starting pitching they have in the first two games against No. 17-ranked Miami, they won't need to score a lot of runs.



Mark Kolozsvary and India hit solo home runs for the Gators and that's all they needed. Kolozsvary lined a shot over the left-field wall off Hurricane starter Jeb Bargfeldt (6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO) in the third and India drilled a solo homer to left in the sixth.

"It gave us a lot of momentum going into the later innings,'' India said. "We really needed that."

While Miami's starting pitching has been very good in the first two games of the series, Florida's has been downright dominant. Faedo and Singer have combined to allow no runs and just seven hits over 16 1/3 innings. They have struck out 19 and walked four.

"I'm really excited,'' O'Sullivan said. "Our starting pitching has a chance to be dynamite. Those are as good starts as we've had here. It's not easy to shut out anybody, let alone a team like Miami.
"It's one of those things, you're only as good as your last game. I told them they need to be greedy and try to get a sweep."

Memo to Miami: Florida's Sunday starter is Jackson , a sophomore right-hander who also throws in the mid-90s and has an arm as good as Faedo's or Singer's.

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Rivalry note: The Gators have now shut out their two primary in-state rivals -- Miami and Florida State -- in each of the last two games against them. The Gators blanked the Seminoles in the final two games of the 2016 Gainesville Super Regional to advance to the College World Series.