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No. 8 Florida hangs on to beat No. 1 Oklahoma

by:Tara Henry•05/03/25
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Photo courtesy of Florida Athletics

Florida secured its first series win over a No. 1 ranked opponent on Saturday evening at Pressly Stadium in front of a raucous crowd.

Keagan Rothrock (12-5) and Ava Brown tag-teamed in the circle to take the series over top-ranked Oklahoma. Brown notched her fourth save of the season in the 6-4 victory. Sam Landry suffered her fourth loss of the season.

Early Momentum for the Gators

Florida struck first in the bottom of the first inning. Jocelyn Erickson drew a one-out walk and advanced to third on a Taylor Shumaker double down the first base line. Erickson came around to score on a sacrifice fly to left field by Reagan Walsh, putting the Gators ahead 1-0.

A scoreless second inning ended with a highlight-reel play from Kendra Falby, who robbed Cydney Sanders of a home run with a leaping grab at the center field wall—her second such catch in as many days.

Florida added two more runs in the third. Erickson again reached base with a walk, and Shumaker singled through the right side. After Walsh drew another walk to load the bases, Korbe Otis delivered with a clutch two-run double to center on a 2-2 pitch, extending the lead to 3-0.

Oklahoma Responds

The Sooners got on the board in the fourth inning with a solo home run to left by Sanders. Rothrock avoided further damage, keeping the Gators ahead 3-1.

The Gators made a pitching change in the fifth as Oklahoma cut the deficit to one. Kasidi Pickering led off with a double to center, and Ella Parker followed with a single to put runners on the corners. Florida brought in Brown to relieve Rothrock. Gabbie Garcia’s sac fly to left made it 3-2 before Brown retired the next two batters to end the threat.

Insurance in the Sixth

Brown gave the Gators breathing room with a solo shot to left field in the bottom of the sixth, making it 4-2. Falby followed with a single and reached third on a fielder’s choice and throwing error. Erickson’s grounder forced a misplay, and pinch-runner Barnard eventually scored on another fielder’s choice. Falby raced home on a passed ball that was just a few feet from the plate. Shumaker’s walk loaded the bases again, but reliever Audrey Lowry entered and escaped further damage. Florida led 6-2 heading into the final frame.

Sooners Make It Interesting

The top of the seventh brought more drama. Parker walked, and Garcia launched a two-run homer to center, cutting the Gators’ lead to 6-4. Brown then issued back-to-back walks to Ailana Agbayani and Sanders, but regrouped and induced a ground out to first to seal the historic win.

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