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The Florida Gators will play two games on Wednesday after eliminating the Kentucky Wildcats in the first game of the day in Omaha. After a seven-run first inning, Florida added eight more and strengthened behind Pierce Coppola on the mound and Brody Donay at the plate to advance to the College World Series semifinals against Texas A&M.
Florida 15, Kentucky 4
Florida used a big first inning to claw its way into the night’s semifinal against the Aggies. The Gators scored seven runs in the first inning, ejecting Kentucky starter Dominic Niman from the game after he recorded just one out and allowed five runs on three hits. One of those hits was a grand slam by Donay that gave Florida a 7-1 lead.
The Gators added two more in the bottom of the third and another five in the fifth inning.
Kentucky found it difficult to advance against Florida left-hander Pierce Coppola, who went five innings and struck out nine batters.
Émilien Pitre’s two-run homer off Coppola in the top of the fifth inning was the last time they scored in the game.
Key statistics
Donay is the fifth Gator in this College World Series with a multi-home run game. His second blast of the game went 415 feet and reached an exit velocity of 117.6 mph, the hardest-hit ball of the tournament. He finished the game 3-for-5 with five RBIs.
Reflexes
The Gators jumped on the Wildcats early, punctuated by Donay’s opposite-field grand slam.
Donay wasn’t done dropping bombs. He led off the bottom of the fifth with his 14th home run of the season to make the score 10-5 Gators.
Jac Caglianone hit his 35th home run of the season and 75th of his Gators career to surpass Matt LaPorta for the most in program history.
Whats Next
Tennessee and Florida State will begin their semifinal Wednesday afternoon in Pool 1. If the Volunteers win, they will advance to the College World Series championship, which begins Saturday.
Should Tennessee lose to the Seminoles, the two teams will meet one last time on Thursday with a spot in the championship series on the line.
Florida will now face Texas A&M on Wednesday night when the Bracket 2 semifinal begins. A win for the Aggies and they will eliminate the Gators.