Thomas Dives, Gators Survive: Florida outlasts FSU with 4-3 win

Story by Kelsey Wolcott

Townsen Thomas hit the grass, and with a dive and a clean glide, she caught the final out of the night to end the Florida Gators’ home losing streak against FSU with a 4-3 victory on Tuesday night. 

Florida pitcher Keagan Rothrock was dealing for 3.2 frames, allowing just her second hit in the seventh inning and earning her second K as FSU got down to its final at-bat with the tying run at first.

Anna Hinde was the Seminoles’ last hope of the night, and she hit a fly ball to left field on the very first pitch. At the last moment, Thomas dove and glided stomach first across the grass to make the catch, sending the crowd and her teammates into a frenzy as the Gators broke the home losing streak against their in-state rival dating back to 2021. 

“It was awesome,” Thomas said of her game-winning play. “The energy was great in the stadium. The team was really excited, and Keagan and Liv pitched an amazing game. I went out there just having fun and trying to back them up the best we can and that just ended with a diving catch.”

The game remained without a score until the second inning, when FSU’s Bella Ruggiero was sent home by Hayley Griggs, who did the heavy lifting with her RBI single to left field. Isa Torres delivered in the same inning with a sacrifice fly, which sent Shelby McKenzie home with a score of 2-0. 

UF clapped back in the third inning after Taylor Shumaker battled through tough pitches, hitting a double to center field to score Gabi Comia and cut Florida State’s lead to 2-1. Shumaker didn’t quit there; she advanced to third on Jocelyn Erickson’s groundout before Thomas drove her home to tie it at 2-2.

The game did not come without its challenges, quite literally. The first challenge of the night was issued by the Seminoles regarding UF’s Thomas, who appeared to have left first base too early. The umpires confirmed it and Thomas was called out, costing UF a baserunner with the tie remaining 2-2.   

Florida’s pitcher was changed out in the fourth inning, with Olivia Miller making way for Keagan Rothrock, who came in throwing strikes. After an unsuccessful challenge for the Gators, who claimed an FSU baserunner had stepped on one of their infielders, they took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth with Ella Wesolowski’s RBI single to left field to plate Kenleigh Cahalan after her leadoff walk.

In the fifth inning, FSU tied the score again at 3-3 after a sacrifice fly by Hinde. She hit a fly ball to right field, deep enough that Torres on third base was able to tag up after the catch and score comfortably.

UF responded immediately in the bottom half. Cahalan battled through a tough six pitch at-bat to draw a walk, Ava Brown singled to left on the first pitch and Giulia Desiderio delivered the go-ahead RBI single up the middle, scoring Cahalan to put UF back on top for good.

Florida coach Tim Walton credited the team’s collective effort for the 4-3 win. 

“I thought we did a really good job and made some good defensive plays, some good pitches and then a couple of timely hits. There’s nothing better than Giulia Desiderio coming through at the end in another pinch-hit opportunity. She’s done a really good job at being clutch for us,” Walton said.