Kentucky Softball Shines In Midweek Match Up; Falls Hard to Florida Over Weekend

Kentucky Softball continues to have their ups and downs as the season goes on.

The No. 23 Wildcats faced Marshall in their non-conference weeknight game on Wednesday. Following a successful first inning on offense, the ‘Cats paved the way to a fairly easy win.

Erin Coffel Breaks RBI Record

Senior and Indiana-native Erin Coffel knocked a three-run bomb out of the park late in the game to carry her team over the finish line with the 7-0 Kentucky dub. Coffel’s three-run homer also made her Kentucky’s all-time RBI hitter as she has batted in 203 runs over her career thus far.

In the Wednesday night victory, Kentucky ace Stephanie Schoonover played a huge role. Schoonover pitched a complete-game shutout after she only allowed Marshall to get four hits and struck out five batters in the contest.

In the end Schoonover’s stellar night combined with strong hitting from everyone on offense allowed the ‘Cats to find the easy win over Marshall. Through seven innings, the Lady Bat ‘Cats recorded 15 hits and four of those came from fifth-year solid batter Rylea Smith.

Game 1: Florida 10, UK 2

Kentucky traveled south to warmer weather in Gainesville on Friday. The Wildcats took on the No. 10 Florida Gators on the road. Unfortunately for the ‘Cats, the warm weather was not enough to help them find a win against the Gators on the first day of the three-game series.

Graduate transfer and left-handed pitcher Jaden Vickers stepped on the mound to start the weekend for Kentucky. Vickers gave up a run at the bottom of the first after allowing the Gators to find an opening and drive in their first run to take the 1-0 lead. Luckily for Vickers, her team picked up the slack on offense in the second inning. A Florida error and RBI single courtesy of freshman Ally Hutchins gave Kentucky a 2-1 lead.

Things went down hill fast for the ‘Cats in the third as their defense struggled. That allowed Florida to load the bases. Vickers gave up a grand slam in the bottom of the third which set off the nine-run frame to give the Gators a dominant 10-2 lead. Kentucky’s offense could not find a hit off Florida’s pitching and went down in run-rule fashion on Friday.

Game 2: Florida 9, UK 1

At the start of the Wildcats’ second game of the weekend against Florida, things were looking more promising out of the gate. McCracken County product Ally Hutchins brought in the first run of the game to put Kentucky up 1-0 going into the bottom of the first inning. Sadly for Hutchins, and her team, it would be the only run scored by the ‘Cats for the rest of the contest.

Kentucky ace Stephanie Schoonover stepped on the mound for her squad on Saturday. It was not the start that the Wildcats were hoping for as the star pitcher walked three batters and gave up two hits. Schoonover’s poor performance in the first gave Florida the 3-1 advantage heading into the second.

The Gators pitching staff shut down Kentucky’s hitters throughout the game after they only pitched 79 balls to the Lady Bat ‘Cats. In comparison, Kentucky threw a total of 155 pitches.

In the bottom of the fourth, junior Alexia Lacatena took to the mound for Schoonover. Florida’s scoring run did not stop after the first as the Gators knocked a rocket out of the park and brought in some more runs to make it 6-1. In the fifth, the Gators continued to launch balls over the fence to increase their lead to 9-1. Tat secured their second straight run-rule victory over the ‘Cats for the weekend.

Game 3: Florida 7, UK 1

In their final game of the series, Kentucky could not muster up enough offense on Sunday to overcome the Gators. Although the ‘Cats were given the full seven innings, pitching gave the Wildcats a slim chance to win.

Florida was able to get two RBI singles with the bases loaded at the bottom of the first off Kentucky’s pitching to take a quick 2-0 lead. At the bottom of the second, a Wildcat error made way for the Gators to score their third run. Before heading into the third, two more RBIs courtesy of Florida made it a 5-0 game.

At the top of the sixth, senior speedster Vanessa Nesby shined a light of hope for Kentucky after hitting a sac fly to cut the ‘Cats’ deficit down 5-1. Nesby’s efforts were not enough, and power hitting by the Gators in the sixth gave Florida the 7-1 victory, and got them the weekend conference series sweep over the Wildcats.

Kentucky’s record sits at 20-11 on the season and 0-6 in SEC play. This is the first time in coach Rachel Lawson’s 17-year career with the ‘Cats that she has not won one of the first six conference games.

Looking ahead for Kentucky, the team will be back at John Cropp Stadium on Tuesday to take on the Dayton Flyers at 6 p.m. ET.