Wednesday May 5, 1999South Florida Hands UF a 11-7 Loss
Gainesville, FL
Baseball Headline
After winning five in a row, the Florida baseball
team appeared to finally be hitting its stride. Then South Florida, winners of
four in a row, came to McKethan Stadium and something had to give. In the end
it was Florida on the losing end, falling 11-7 in front of 1,584 at McKethan Stadium.
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South Florida (25-23) jumped on UF starter Jay Belflower in the first inning for four runs. The first four batters reached and scored against Belflower (1-4). Belflower left in the third after again allowing the first four Bulls to reach base.
Florida tied a season-high with five home runs, including back-to-back-to-back solo blasts in the sixth by Greg Catalanotte, Jason Dill, and Peter Nystrom. Taylor Wood added a three-run home run in the second, and Ryan Shealy hit a solo homer in the eighth.
USF starter Shannon Royal (1-1) allowed only the home run to Wood in four innings to earn the win. The Bulls’ offense was led by Mike Barclay’s three hits and three RBIs. Mike Pilger and Johnny Raburn each added three hits.
The Gators had good relief performances from Sergio Rodriguez, Derek DeVaughan, and Keith Brice but could get little going with the bats. Catalanotte had two of UF’s seven hits on the night. The loss was Florida’s first in nine Wednesday games this season.
Florida jumps back into Southeastern Conference play this weekend. The Gators travel to Starkville, Miss., to play Mississippi State. Florida is tied with South Carolina for first in the SEC East at 12-12. The Rebels are in last in the SEC West at 12-11 in league play.
South Florida 405 010 010 - 11 15 1
Florida 030 003 010 - 7 7 1Royal, Fuller (5), Goldberg (6), Strickland (7), Brown (8), Glaser (9) and Earle. Belflower, Rodriguez (3), DeVaughan (5), Brice (7) and Johannes, Heath (9). W – Royal 1-1. L – Belflower 1-4. S – None. HR: South Florida, None. Florida, Wood (3), Catalanotte (17), Dill (8), Nystrom (9), Shealy (8). T – 3:16. A – 1,584.
