Florida Gators

OMAHA, Neb. — The latest man of the hour for the Gators sat in a corner of the clubhouse late Wednesday afternoon, surrounded by reporters. Most of the day, outfielder Michael Robertson had sat on the bench during Florida's 3-2 victory over TCU.

He entered the game in the top of the ninth as a pinch-runner for Tyler Shelnut after Shelnut led off the inning with a double that TCU right fielder Austin Davis almost caught but didn't. Robertson had no such problem when it was his turn with the glove.

But first, Robertson raced home from third on a two-out dribbler to shortstop off the bat of teammate Cade Kurland with the go-ahead run in the top of the inning. The score answered TCU's run in the bottom of the eighth that, for the third consecutive game in the College World Series, forced Gators fans to bite their nails and pace anxiously as they wondered if Kevin O'Sullivan's team could pull out another one-run win.

The answer was yes, and the reward was a berth in the CWS championships series that opens Saturday night against the Wake Forest-LSU elimination game scheduled for Thursday night at Charles Schwab Field.

"This is not easy,'' O'Sullivan said. "Bottom line, this time of year, you get Ws. It doesn't matter how you get them." Before the Gators could celebrate their first trip to the CWS final since the program's first national title in 2017, Robertson would do something that put him in the postgame spotlight.

He stayed in the game in the bottom of the ninth as Wyatt Langford, who started in center field, moved to left in place of Shelnut. When closer Brandon Neely retired the first two TCU batters of the inning, the Horned Frogs were down to their last out in Omaha unless Brayden Taylor came up with a big hit.

Taylor responded with a deep drive over Robertson's head that, off the bat, sounded like a game-tying home run. Robertson had other ideas. He raced toward the warning track, jumped, and crashed into the wall.

When he landed, Robertson had the ball in his glove for the final out and Florida's eighth consecutive NCAA Tournament victory.

"Any play like that in that situation is do-or-die, so if it's in the air and it's going to be close to the wall, I'm running through it,'' Robertson said. "I'm going to make the play. I think it traveled further than I initially thought it was going to, but I was hopeful I was going to have a play on it the whole time. I'm happy to have been able to make that play.

"In the moment, I kind of almost blacked out. It looks alright on camera."

Robertson is not alone among the Orange & Blue faithful who have hung on every pitch of the Gators' trip to the CWS. Florida became the first team in 21 years to win its first three games at the CWS by a single run, a string of nail-biters unmatched in Omaha since Texas in 2002.

Robertson's catch put an exclamation point on an otherwise typical Gators victory in the postseason. They got a two-run homer from shortstop Josh Rivera in the first inning, an outing from starter Jac Caglianone that didn't last long (4 1/3 innings) but included some pitches when he needed them, and a strong performance from the bullpen as relievers Ryan Slater, Cade Fisher and Neely limited TCU to three hits and one run over 4 2/3 innings.

"He makes a heck of a play to end the ball game,'' O'Sullivan said. "It was just a fitting end for the way this tournament has gone for us."

Besides Robertson's highlight-reel grab, perhaps the most impressive part of Florida's victory on Wednesday was how it responded in the top of the ninth. The Gators led 2-1 from the first inning until the bottom of the eighth when TCU's Anthony Silva tied the game 2-2 with a ground-rule double that bounced over the wall. Tre Richardson, who had singled with one out and moved into scoring position on a grounder back to the mound, scored on the play.

In a game runs were hard to come by, Shelnut ignited Florida's ninth-inning rally by driving a 3-2 pitch from Horned Frogs reliever Ben Abeldt off the base of the wall in right-center as Davis attempted to make a running catch. TCU coach Kirk Saarloos replaced Abeldt with right-hander Garrett Wright, who got pinch-hitter Dale Thomas to pop out on a bunt attempt. Colby Halter flew out to right field for the second out, bringing Kurland to the plate.

Kurland stepped into the batter's box in a 1-for-19 slump over his last four games. He swung and missed at Wright's first two pitches, then fouled off a pitch.

"I just knew he wasn't going to get me out,'' Kurland said. "I wasn't going to go down."

True to his word, Kurland chopped a roller toward Silva at shortstop and beat the throw to first for a go-ahead RBI infield single. Robertson broke for home as soon as Kurland made contact.

"I hit the plate, and I looked back just to see where the ball was, and I saw it was kind of sticking, and at that moment, I realized he was going to be safe,'' he said. "I was pretty pumped up."

A few minutes later on another hot Omaha afternoon, Robertson was in the middle of the action again. This time as a defensive replacement in center field as Taylor's deep drive sailed his way.

Robertson raised his arms triumphantly as he returned to the ground with the ball in his glove, knowing the Gators had advanced to play for the national championship.

Meanwhile, Taylor dropped his shoulders and later offered a tip of the cap to Robertson and the Gators.

"I put a good swing on it,'' he said. "I thought it may have a chance. Big credit to Florida, though. Florida is going to be the team to win this thing."

The Gators have work left, but it's easy to understand Taylor's assessment based on what they have done lately.

They are getting contributions at unexpected moments from unexpected players. Robertson didn't' start loosening up until the fifth inning, figuring he would get an opportunity as a defensive replacement late in the game.

He did and made the most of it. It's the ongoing story for this Gators baseball team.

"I think it just goes to show what kind of chemistry we have,'' Robertson said. "Everybody's playing for one another, and I think that's probably the most important thing this time of year. It's special getting to experience that on this big of a stage. It's what you dream of. It's what you play for.

"We pride ourselves on that, to be able to get it done in big-time situations."

If they do it two more times, they will be national champions.