It was an epic moment. Sent from my iPad
> On May 27, 2018, at 1:23 PM, Oliver Barry <[email protected]> wrote: > > Jordan Matthews’ hit was probably the play of the year for all of Gator > sports. > > Oliver Barry CRS, GRI > Real Estate Broker > PARKS Real Estate Services > 305 B Indian Lake Blvd > Suite 220 > Hendersonville TN 37075 > Office: 615-826-4040 > Mobile: 615-972-4239 > [email protected] > > Begin forwarded message: > >> From: Shane Ford <[email protected]> >> Date: May 27, 2018 at 10:23:41 AM CDT >> To: GatorNews <[email protected]> >> Subject: [gatornews] [SUN]: EPIC WIN: Matthews-led Gators advance to WCWS >> Reply-To: [email protected] >> >> EPIC WIN: Matthews-led Gators advance to WCWS >> By gatorsports (Gainesville Sun) - May 26, 201826356 >> >> The Gators celebrate their 5-3 win Saturday over Texas A&M in the NCAA Super >> Regional at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. The series was split going into >> the third game in the series. The Gators will head back to the Women's >> College World Series for the ninth time in the program's history. [Cyndi >> Chambers/Correspondent] >> In the white noise of the moment, Tim Walton never saw it go out. He was >> busy trying to get the winning run home with a windmill wave because he was >> assuming that — like so many balls Florida hit this weekend — it would smack >> off the wall. >> >> But he forgot something important — one ounce. >> >> The ounce he added to Jordan Matthews’ 34-inch bat Saturday to give her some >> extra pop. >> >> “It was the first time all season she swung the bat she used in high >> school,” he said. “But she deserves all the credit.” >> >> Matthews, a freshman, drilled a three-run homer to left-center in the bottom >> of the seventh that gave Florida a 5-3 win to bring a dramatic end to a >> dramatic series. >> >> The homer, Matthews’ fifth of the season, landed somewhere in Oklahoma City >> where Florida will play next in the Women’s College World Series. >> >> “I was just trying to score Amanda (Lorenz from second), really,” Matthews >> said. “Tring to hit it hard in a gap. I knew it was out. I was just >> embracing the moment.” >> >> Matthews’ walk-off, on the last pitch before Katie Seashole Pressly is >> renovated, came on a 2-2 pitch after she fouled off a pair of strikes. She >> had been using a 24-ounce bat because of missing the entire fall after >> tearing an ACL in high school and losing some of her lower body strength. >> >> In fact, Walton shared a story about a Facetime call with Matthews’ mother >> Nadia Martinez before the season when mom wondered if her daughter would >> even play this year because of her injury. >> >> “I hope she plays every game,” Walton said at the time. >> >> She has at least two more as second-seeded Florida (55-9) advances to the >> WCWS for the ninth time and will face seventh-seeded Georgia in the first >> game at 7 p.m. Thursday (ESPN2). >> >> The home run was the climax to a game with more layers than the royal >> wedding cake. >> >> This is how crazy it was — Florida’s ace pitcher gave up more hits than she >> has in a game all season and the winning pitcher gave up what looked like a >> soul-crushing homer in the top of the seventh. Oh, and Florida had two >> runners thrown out at the plate and the winning coach was ripping his own >> decision about pitching before anyone could Tweet him about it. >> >> It was wild and crazy and sweaty and intense for seven spectacular innings >> with one spectacular ending. >> >> Kelly Barnhill kept pitching in and out of trouble for Florida and the >> Gators got a pair of runs in the fourth and the fifth on two-out singles by >> Hannah Adams and Janell Wheaton. >> >> When Texas A&M loaded the bases with nobody out in the sixth, Walton pulled >> Barnhill for Aleshia Ocasio. The senior got out of the inning with only one >> run scoring on a wild pitch. >> >> “She pitched her butt off,” Walton said. >> >> Ocasio struck out the first two batters she faced in the seventh and the >> crowd of 2,068 was poised to celebrate. >> >> But A&M’s Sarah Hudek, who had seven hits for the three games, hit a soft >> single to right to keep the Aggies alive. >> >> That brought up Tori Vidales, who won Friday night’s game with a three-run >> homer off Ocasio. >> >> “Before anyone Tweets me or texts me or calls me, that was a dumb decision >> to not bring Barnhill back,” Walton said. “I obviously should have. It was >> dumb on my part. I had a gut feeling and I didn’t go with my gut.” >> >> Vidales blasted a two-run homer off Ocasio, who had seen Florida’s WCWS >> hopes die two years earlier on a walk-off homer by Georgia to the same spot, >> and Texas A&M (44-18) was three outs from taking the win. >> >> “You’re on top of the world,” said Aggies coach Jo Evans, “and then it comes >> crashing down.” >> >> Two walks gave Florida hope but Wheaton was called out on a 3-2 pitch on the >> corner and Florida’s season was down to its last out. >> >> Enter Matthews. >> >> “I was thinking, ‘Did that really just happen?’ “ Wheaton said. “I’ve >> already watched it five times. If I have bruises on my body from the >> celebration, I’m not feeling them.” >> >> There was only one feeling for this team Saturday night. >> >> “That was a ‘Holy Bleep’ moment,” Walton said. “You say, ‘Wow,’ what a game.” >> >> WCWS Glance Thursday >> >> Arizona State vs. Oregon, 12 p.m., ESPN >> >> Washington vs. Oklahoma, 2:30 p.m., ESPN >> >> Georgia vs. Florida, 7 p.m., ESPN2 >> >> Florida State vs. UCLA, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Sent From Shane's iPhone >> Go Gators! & Skål Vikes! >> -- >> -- >> GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! >> 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 >> National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 >> National Football Champions | >> Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), >> Tim Tebow (2007) >> --- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "GatorNews" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- > -- > GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! > 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 > National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 > National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier > (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "GatorTalk" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "GatorTalk" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
