Three takeaways from the Gators’ series loss against Tennessee

In their first ranked conference series of the season, the Florida Gators softball team won just one of three games in the series against the No. 15 Tennessee Lady Vols in Gainesville.

The series loss snaps an 11-SEC regular season series winning streak for the Gators, who now sit at 5-4 in conference play with a 27-5 record on the season. 

Florida was outscored 14-6 on the weekend, being shut out on Friday 6-0 with a near shutout on Saturday in a 7-2 loss. UF bounced back against the Lady Vols on Sunday afternoon with a 4-1 victory.

“I mean, we’re not gonna win every game,” shortstop Skylar Wallace said. “We talked about that, but we have control. We can control and just keep doing the little things right, and that’s what we did [Sunday]. And that’s going to lead really well into this weekend.”

The Gators have a tough week ahead as they host the UCF Knights on Wednesday before traveling to the plains to face the No. 18 Auburn Tigers.

Florida can’t solely rely on its speed

On the season, the Florida starters have just 23 home runs compared to Tennessee’s 42 homers from its starters. The Lady Vols finished with three home runs this weekend compared the Gators’ two.

The two teams actually tied with 18 hits on the weekend, but Tennessee was able to capitalize with runners on base while Florida just couldn’t find a way to bring runs in on Friday and Saturday.

UF centerfielder Kendra Falby is arguably the Gators’ most dangerous player when she steps up to the plate, but that wasn’t the case in the Tennessee series.

She finished with just one hit in her eight at bats against the Vols. Her ridiculous speed can’t be utilized if she’s not hitting well, and that’s what happened this weekend.

Skylar Wallace is the fuel Gators need

The shortstop is the leader that brings the Gators together, and she proves her worth on the field. 

She had just two hits on Friday and Saturday combined, but she played a key role in the Gators’ Sunday victory. When she hits well, her team responds.

“Skylar,” UF first baseman Avery Goelz said. “Skylar steps up as a leader, along with Charla Echols and Cheyenne [Lindsey]. They’re all just really trying to get the team going and motivated, which really helped us. Right before the game, Skylar came and talked to us and really motivated us, and I think that really got us going.”

On Sunday, Wallace went 2-for-2 while being hit by a pitch and walked another time. She tied a career-high three bases stolen and is now 28-for-28 on stolen bases this season.

Elizabeth Hightower pitched well in both outings

The 2021 All-American pitcher suffered her first loss of the season on Friday night when she gave up seven hits and three runs while tossing six strikeouts in 5.2 innings. After being pulled from the circle, the Lady Vols ran away with it on Friday.

Hightower returned to the circle on Sunday with a 4.1-inning showing, where she gave up just two hits — one of which was a home run — while tossing five strikeouts. She didn’t earn the win as Natalie Lugo came in to relieve her, but Hightower had near total control of the game while in the circle.

“I really think it was really probably a little more [Hightower],” UF head coach Tim Walton said. “On Friday, she didn’t miss her spot. She threw a really good game. She hit the corners, did a really good job changing speeds when she needed to.

“You saw the number of changeups she went to (Sunday), so tells me a little bit about whether it be her rise or her drop. She used a little more change today, so second time, you know, second time you face somebody it makes sense.”