GAINESVILLE, Fla. — It seemed nearly impossible a month ago.
It appeared unlikely a week ago.
It became a reality on Monday when the
NCAA announced the Gators as the No. 13 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and host of the Gainesville Regional.
Florida's late-season surge — which included four wins and a run to the championship game of the SEC Tournament on Sunday in Hoover, Ala. — proved enough in the selection committee's view. As a result, the Gators face Central Michigan on Friday night at Condron Ballpark in the second game of the Gainesville Regional. Oklahoma faces Liberty in the first game.
"At the end of the day, the players have to go out there and perform, and they did,'' UF coach
Kevin O'Sullivan said Thursday. "They kind of figured it out."
Following a disheartening 6-4 loss to No. 1-ranked Tennessee in 11 innings on April 24, the Gators dropped to 23-17 overall, 6-12 in the SEC. Florida led 4-0 but could not hang on and avoid being swept. Instead of checking out, the Gators warmed up.
They have won 16 of their last 21 games and are hosting a regional for the second consecutive year at Condron Ballpark, which opened in 2021.
O'Sullivan tinkered with the lineup by moving outfielder
Wyatt Langford to the leadoff spot, moving right fielder
Sterlin Thompson to second base, second baseman
Colby Halter to third, and inserting
Ty Evans into right field. Those moves, combined with improved pitching from the starters and bullpen, helped catapult the Gators into the NCAA Tournament for the 14th consecutive season with O'Sullivan in charge. The Gators appeared on their way to a postseason berth in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down collegiate athletics.
"Really, the reason why we made that move, to move Colby over to third, was to get one more bat in the lineup," O'Sullivan said. "We were really inconsistent in the bullpen. There had been a lot of 4-2, 5-3 ballgames and all of a sudden we might have to win in a different way" 8-6, 9-7. We figured it out on the mound but that was the process. We moved Ty out there and he hit a three-run homer in the eighth [at Mississippi State]. It did make a difference. It's really that simple."
In a long season, the Gators peaked at the right time. The next challenge is to stay hot in the NCAA Tournament.
Here is a closer look at the Gainesville Regional lineup:
1. FLORIDA
Record: 39-22, 15-15 in Southeastern Conference
Coach: Kevin O'Sullivan,
15th year (624-300, .675)
NCAA Tournament: 37th appearance all-time (14th consecutive)
Tournament record: 116-80 (12 trips to College World Series)
Season highlight: The Gators sparked their postseason run by sweeping a three-game series at Mississippi State in early May. UF has won 16 of 21 overall and is playing its best baseball of the season.
Quote of note: "I would say it's been one of the more enjoyable seasons for us. They have gotten better. From my standpoint and the other coaches' standpoint, this is why you do this. You want guys to get better, and they certainly have." — Gators head coach
Kevin O'Sullivan on the team's late-season surge
Player to watch: Gators left fielder
Wyatt Langford, a season after riding the bench as a freshman, leads the SEC with 23 home runs. Langford's move to the top of the order late in the season helped boost the offensive production. He's hitting .363/.457/.722 and has emerged as one of the nation's most dangerous hitters.
Buzz: A lot of fans and pundits
counted the Gators out after ace
Hunter Barco was lost for the season due to Tommy John surgery midseason. Instead, the starting rotation of
Brandon Sproat,
Brandon Neely and
Nick Pogue has gotten better and a young bullpen anchored by
Blake Purnell has shown significant improvement. Florida won four games in the SEC Tournament last week to earn a spot as a regional host, and with a lineup that features Langford, center fielder
Jud Fabian and catcher
BT Riopelle, the Gators can score with anybody. If the pitching continues to perform well, the Gators have a chance to play deep into the postseason.
2. OKLAHOMA
Record: 37-20, 15-9 in Big 12
Coach: Skip Johnson, 5th year (149-100, .598)
NCAA Tournament: 39th appearance all-time (first since 2018)
Tournament record: 86-76 (10 trips to College World Series)
Season highlight: Cade Horton struck out a career-high nine and the Sooners exploded for an eight-run third inning to win the Big 12 Championship against Texas at Globe Life Field, the program's third Big 12 Tournament title and first since 2013.
Quote of note: "Last year, we didn't get that opportunity. It was like it left a little bad taste in our mouth." — Sooners coach
Skip Johnson on returning to the NCAA Tournament
Player to watch: Sooners redshirt sophomore shortstop
Peyton Graham is one of six finalists for the Brooks Wallace Award, presented to nation's top shortstop. Graham, who is hitting .338, leads Oklahoma with 16 home runs, four triples, 60 RBI, 65 runs and 30 stolen bases. In 28 games since April 10, Graham is batting .371 (43-for-116) with 36 RBIs.
Buzz: The Sooners got hot late in the season like the Gators, and have won 19 of their last 27 games. Oklahoma has pitching and hitting, led on the mound by 6-foot-6, 234-pound lefty
Jake Bennett, who is 7-3 with a 3.60 ERA and 103 strikeouts in 90 innings. Offensively, Graham sets the table and was the Most Outstanding Player of the Big 12 Conference Tournament.
Tanner Tredaway (.359, 6 HR, 55 RBI) provides Graham help in the lineup. Meanwhile, when the Sooners get on base, they like to run. Oklahoma has 135 stolen bases and five Sooners have 10 or more, including Graham (30), Tredaway (23) and outfielder
Kendall Pettis (21). If the Sooners stay hot, they are a threat to advance.
3. LIBERTY
Record: 37-21, 19-11 in Atlantic Sun
Coach: Scott Jackson, 6th year (195-114, .631)
NCAA Tournament: Eighth appearance all-time (third consecutive)
Tournament record: 6-14 (has never advanced to CWS)
Season highlight: The Flames opened the season by taking two of three games against the Gators, setting the stage for the program's third consecutive NCAA Tournament berth.
Quote of note: "It's kind of ironic that we're going back to Gainesville, but after that weekend, I felt like we had a good team." — Liberty head coach
Scott Jackson
Player to watch: Outfielder
Aaron Anderson homered in Liberty's series-clinching win over the Gators in February and enters the NCAA Tournament leading the Flames with a slash line of .318/.429/.494. Anderson has eight home runs. Anderson has not attempted to steal a base, but he gets on base a lot: 35 walks and 12 hit by pitches.
Buzz: Liberty made noise a year ago by advancing to the championship game of the Knoxville Regional before losing to the host Vols. The Flames can score runs with sluggers
Brady Gulakowski (.265, 16 HR, 63 RBI) and
Derek Orndorff (.265, 15, 48) in the middle of the lineup. However, starters
Joe Adametz III (6-3, 2.47 ERA) and
Dylan Cumming (5-4, 4.71) and the rest of the pitching staff will likely determine how long the Flames keep burning in the NCAA Tournament.
4. CENTRAL MICHIGAN
Record: 42-17, 30-7 in Mid-American Conference
Coach: Jordan Bischel, 4th year (142-55, .721)
NCAA Tournament: 15th appearance all-time (third consecutive)
Tournament record: 14-28 (has never advanced to CWS)
Season highlight: Central Michigan had to fight its way out of the loser's bracket in the MAC Tournament, beating Toledo in the championship game. The Chippewas won three games in two days and overcame a pair of four-run deficits in the title game.
Quote of note: "The message has always been the same: We're going down to compete, we're going down to win. When you deliver, maybe it's a little bit more believable. We've beaten some really good teams. We won't approach it any different than our conference tournament or a nonconference game in the middle of the week." -- Chippewas head coach
Jordan Bischel
Player to watch: A 6-foot-5 lanky right-hander, sophomore
Andrew Taylor is tough on opposing hitters. Taylor has limited batters to a .201 average and struck out 117 in 79 innings. Taylor enters the postseason with an 8-3 record and 3.19 ERA. Taylor was the MAC Pitcher of the Year in 2021 after winning a program-record 11 games.
Buzz: The Chippewas are the regional's lowest seed but don't expect them to be intimidated. Central Michigan upset Miami in the 2019 regionals and a year ago in the South Bend (Ind.) Regional, advanced to the championship game. While Taylor is the team's top pitcher, second baseman
Mario Camilletti is a tough out for opponents. Camilletti is batting .384 with 20 doubles, seven homers and 51 RBI. He has also walked 52 times, twice his number of strikeouts (26). Right fielder
Jakob Marsee is a tough out with a .344 average and team-leading 65 RBI. Marsee hit two grand slams in one game earlier this season. The Chippewas are batting .297 as a team.
