Friday, May 6
Gainesville, Fla.
6:00 PM
Florida Gators
vs
Arkansas
The series marks the final home games of the 2016 regular season for the Orange and Blue.
Florida Hosts Arkansas in Final Home Series of Regular Season
Thursday, May 5, 2016 | Softball
The series marks the final home games of the 2016 regular season for the Orange and Blue.
Game Notes
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 1-ranked Gator Softball team (49-4, 17-4 SEC) will host Arkansas (17-36, 1-20 SEC) this weekend at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Game times are set for 6 p.m. on Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The series marks the final home games of the 2016 regular season for the Orange and Blue, and UF will honor its five seniors in a pregame ceremony before Saturday's game.
Florida's senior class is currently 222-32, which currently ranks fourth among four-year class records in program history. Taylore Fuller, Kirsti Merritt, Aubree Munro, Taylor Schwarz and Kelsey Stewart are trying to catch UF's 2011 class which boasted a 238-33 mark during their four years.
UF's magic number to clinch its sixth SEC Championship is just two. The Gators can win the title with a win and an Auburn loss to Texas A&M on Friday night, or with wins on both Friday and Saturday. Florida, picked in the preseason to win the SEC, is looking to win its second-straight SEC regular season crown for the first time since the Gators went back-to-back 2008 and 2009.
Florida has the opportunity to clinch the SEC regular-season title at home for the first time since 1998.
Against the Razorbacks, Florida leads the all-time series, 41-10, which includes a 21-5 advantage in Gainesville.
Coaches' Corner
Head Coach Tim Walton:
"It's one thing to have the opportunity to win a championship, but it's another thing to be able to control your own destiny to win a championship. It's a tough thing to do. It's hard to root for other people to get things done, so when you have an opportunity to take care of your own business, I think there's a lot more potential for it to be special. We've got to play well against Arkansas and we have to come out and do the things that we do. Our team coming into this season had a goal of getting back to the Women's College World Series, and winning an SEC Championship was one of those things we've wanted to achieve along the way."
Quick Hits
- UF is ranked No. 1 in both polls, No. 1 in the NCAA RPI and has the third-toughest schedule in the NCAA. In addition, Florida has the highest win percentage (.925) in the country.
- Florida has allowed just 60 runs and committed only 25 errors through 53 games. UF's 60 runs allowed through 53 games is the second fewest in school history through this point in any season. Florida's 2009 squad allowed 40 tallies through 53 contests.
- The Gators currently sport the second-best fielding percentage (.982) and best earned run average (0.94) in the nation. For comparison through 53 games last season, Florida's pitchers had a 1.82 ERA and its defense had committed 28 errors and had a fielding percentage of .980. UF went on to record a .981 fielding percentage and commit just 33 errors, which are both school records.
- UF's astounding 0.94 team ERA (350.2 IP) would go down as the third-best ERA for a single season in program history if the season ended today. In addition, Florida's miniscule .159 batting average against (350.2 IP) would be the second-best b/avg. for a single season in program history.
- Delanie Gourley (17-3, 186 K), Kelly Barnhill (14-0, 147 K) and Aleshia Ocasio (18-1, 122 K) are trying to become the first trio in UF history to win at least 15 games each and record 125+ strikeouts in a single season. UF is the only school in the nation with three different pitchers with at least 100 strikeouts in 2016.
- Ocasio (0.74) and Gourley (0.80) have the No. 3 and No. 4 ERAs in the country and Barnhill is 11th with a 1.39 earned run average. Historically, UF is trying to join its own 2009 squad and South Carolina's 1997 team as the only SEC teams to ever finish a season with two pitchers in the top-five nationally in ERA. In addition, UF has a chance to join FSU's 1993 squad as the only teams to finish a season with three pitchers in the top 10.
- UF's pitching staff has allowed the fewest runs in the SEC (60) and recorded the most strikeouts (455).
- Florida's opponents have only attempted to steal 10 bases against Aubree Munro and UF's catchers this season. That mark would shatter Florida's school record of 25 attempts by opponents that was set in 2015. In addition, UF's stolen-base-against percentage of 40% (4-10) this season would be the lowest in school history if the season ended today. Florida's 2003 team holds UF's top mark as they allowed just 51.7% (31-60) of runners to steal a base safely.
- Offensively, UF is 10th in the country in OBP (.439), 27th in scoring (6.19) and ranks 41st in BA (.315).
- Senior Kelsey Stewart is the NCAA active leader in games played (254), at-bats (883), hits (350), triples (29) and she's third in total bases (498) and fourth in runs scored (251).
Setting the Stage: Arkansas
- Florida leads the all-time series with Arkansas, 41-10; that includes a 21-5 advantage in Gainesville.
- UF has defeated UA 21 straight times, which is Florida's second-longest winning streak over an SEC team in school history. UF's top streak is 28 when UF beat South Carolina from April 13, 2003 through May 4, 2013.
UF vs. Arkansas Promotions
Friday:
- Back-to-Back Championships Pint Glass Giveaway
- First 250 fans receive a Back-to-Back Championship Pint Glass
- Kids Pregame Lineups
- All Kids 12 & under are encouraged to join the Gators on the field for pregame lineups in the Sun Day
Saturday:
- Senior Day
- Fans are encourage to arrive early to help congratulate all of Florida's seniors on their great careers
- Post-Game Autographs
- Select Gators will sign autographs following the game
Sunday:
- Final Home Game
- Don't miss the Gators final home game of the 2016 regular season!
- Kids Run The Bases
- All kids 12 & under can run the bases following the game!
Broadcast Information
Friday and Sunday's games can be seen on SEC Network+, while Saturday's contest will be broadcast on SEC Network. All three games can be heard on Florida Sports Talk (WGGG-AM & WMOP-AM/FM).
In addition, live stats links for each contest can be found on the Gators' schedule page.
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In the Polls: NFCA | USA Softball
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Head Coach Tim Walton on Twitter
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
LHP
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
1B
/ Softball
INF
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