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Florida's Cade Kurland blasts grand slam in series against rival Georgia

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•04/14/23
Florida Gators baseball team
Photo courtesy of UAA Communications

Early in a game against arch-rival Georgia, Florida flipped the script after a slow start and Cade Kurland blasted a grand slam to take the lead in the third inning.

Florida fell behind 3-0 in the top of the third inning when Georgia plated the game’s opening run and then fired a two-run homer over the left field wall.

The Gators wasted little time responding in the bottom half of the inning.

Leadoff hitter Wyatt Langford walked to lead things off, then scored moments later following a single and a sacrifice fly. After catcher BT Riopelle was hit by a pitch and designated hitter Luke Heyman walked, the bases were loaded for second baseman Cade Kurland, setting up the grand slam potential.

On a full count, Kurland ripped a grand slam to left field. Check it out below.

The Cade Kurland grand slam continued a season-long theme for the Gators: They’ve got a lot of power and a devastating set of bats.

Kurland had hit nine home runs entering the day, matching Langford’s total. Those two were both one home run away from joining Jac Caglianone and Josh Rivera with double-digit dingers.

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Caglianone has blasted a nation-leading 19 home runs, while Rivera has hit 13.

As a team, Florida had hit 74 home runs entering its three-game series with rival Georgia. That was good for third in the country, trailing only South Carolina‘s 78 and Florida Gulf Coast‘s 77. The Gators had played one more game than both of those teams.

At its current pace, Florida will have a chance to break the school record for home runs in a single season.

As far as the weekend series, Florida is looking to preserve its perfect record in series so far this season. The Gators have won every weekend series they’ve been in so far, with last week’s a strong showing over Tennessee.

Game 2 against Georgia is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, with the series finale scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch on Sunday.