All Gators

Gators Complete Run-Rule Sweep of Dayton

Pierce Coppola recorded eight strikeouts, while Cade Kurland hit two home runs as Florida Gators run-ruled Dayton, 12-2, in eight innings to sweep the Flyers.

Cam Parker

Pierce Coppola accounted for eight strikeouts in five innings as the Florida Gators swept Dayton.
Pierce Coppola accounted for eight strikeouts in five innings as the Florida Gators swept Dayton. / Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated.

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Pierce Coppola pitched five innings with eight strikeouts, and Cade Kurland hit two home runs as a pinch hitter as the No. 10 Florida Gators on Sunday completed a three-game sweep against Dayton with a 12-2 win.

Sunday's win marked the first time UF recorded a three-game sweep with each win coming by at least 10 runs since 2005 and marked the second-straight series sweep for the Gators this season.

While Florida's bats struggled to find momentum early with no runs through three innings, Coppola shined in his second-straight Sunday start.

He began the outing back-to-back swinging strikeouts in the first inning followed by another two-strikeout inning in the second. He added another strikeout in the third and fourth innings, marking his ninth inning pitched with at least one strikeout.

The fourth inning, however, is when Dayton did some damage.

A leadoff triple from Michaeal DiMartini started things after UF outfielder Ty Evans misread a fly ball in right field. Rylan Lujo scored DiMartini with a sac-fly two batters later to give Dayton its first lead in the series.

He began to fade in the fifth inning after allowing a leadoff home run and a two-out double, but he was able to limit any further damage and finished his outing with only three hits, two earned runs and one walk.

Florida's bats, however, struggled to find runs early despite putting runners on base. Kyle Jones, who returned to the lineup from injury, and Bobby Boser began Sunday's game with back-to-back hits but would fail to score after two fly outs and a fielder's choice.

After no runners in the second, Justin Nadeau, Boser and Colby Shelton drew walks to load the bases with two outs, but Dayton continued to keep the Gators off the board with another fielder's choice.

Dayton starter JJ Gatti held Florida to no runs in three innings pitched despite allowing two hits and four walks. However, the Flyers turned to the bullpen in the fourth inning, and the Gator bats finally found momentum over the next four frames.

Ty Evans knocked in a run with an RBI single with no outs in the fourth to start things before scoring himself off an RBI single from Kyle Jones. Justin Nadeau, who reached base on a fielder's choice, would add Florida's third run of the frame after scoring off a wild pitch.

Colby Shelton added another run off an RBI to score Jones.

Dayton reliever Ben Dean allowed six hits and four runs, all of which were earned, with five walks and three wild pitches before being replaced by Bennett LaPalm with two outs in the frame.

Florida continued to add to its lead in the fifth and sixth inning with a pair of RBI singles as Evans scored Brendan Lawson in the fifth, and Lawson scored Shelton in the sixth.

Cade Kurland, who replaced Nadeau at second, smashed a two-run homer in the seventh inning to essentially seal the win before Florida added two more with Jones scoring off a throwing error at second base and Donay plating one off a ground out.

He added another another two-run shot in the eighth to seal the run-rule win.

Next Up

The Gators hit the road on Tuesday for a midweek matchup at Stetson. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m. with streaming-only coverage on ESPN+.

Published
Cam Parker
CAM PARKER

Cam Parker is a contributing writer at AllGators.com of FanNation-Sports Illustrated and is a recent graduate of the University of Florida with a degree in journalism. He also covers and broadcasts Alachua County high school sports with The Prep Zone and Mainstreet Daily News. When he isn't writing, he enjoys listening to '70s music such as The Band or Lynyrd Skynyrd, binge-watching shows and playing with his cat, Chester.

Home/Baseball