Miami Hurricanes rally late again, but this time stun No. 1 Florida Gators in 13 innings
The Miami Hurricanes once again found life in the ninth inning Saturday — then made it count for good in the 13th.
The Canes rallied for three runs in the ninth before scoring another two in the 13th on an RBI-single by Raymond Gil and Florida infield error to help Miami defeat the No. 1 Gators 10-9 at Florida Ballpark in Gainesville.
UM also rallied in the ninth inning on Friday in the season opener for these two in-state rivals, but the Gators won 7-5.
The victory snapped a six-game losing streak to UF. The Canes, ranked 11th by Baseball America and 21 by D1Baseball.com, won only their fourth game of the past 20 between the programs.
In the top of the 13th, UM’s Christian Del Castillo walked, Ben Wanger was hit by a pitch, Gil singled to right field to score Del Castillo and Jordan Lala reached on what should have been an easy third out. But UF first baseman Kris Armstrong dropped a perfect throw to score Wanger for the eventual winning run.
Florida had a 5-0 lead after one inning Saturday, but UM chipped away with one in the second, two in the fifth, one apiece in the seventh and eighth and the 3-run ninth. The Canes got those three runs without a hit, but Florida pitcher Franco Aleman allowed five walks and hit a batter in that frame.
UF’s Kirby McMullen singled to make it 10-9 in the bottom of the 13th, but Armstrong popped up for the last out.
UM reliever Wanger, a graduate transfer who previously played at USC, Yale and Belmont Hill, allowed 1 run on two hits in two innings for his first Canes victory.
Tony Jenkins led UM with 3 RBI, three singles and a walk.
The final game of the three-game series is at 1 p.m. Sunday.
This story was originally published February 20, 2021 at 5:58 PM.
