GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Caleb Granger went six innings and only surrendered two earned runs, and the Florida A&M lineup tallied a game-high seven hits, but it was not enough in a 3-0 loss to No. 2 Florida on Friday night in the Gainesville Regional.
Florida A&M fell behind quickly in the bottom of the first inning when Florida shortstop Josh Rivera sent a Granger pitch out beyond the left field wall, good for a two-run home run that gave the Gators an early 2-0 lead.
The Rattlers (29-28) managed seven hits against Gators starter Jac Caglianone, who worked through seven full innings and gave up four hits, no runs, three walks and struck out seven.
Despite the scoreless performance by Caglianone, the Rattlers were paced at the plate by freshman Joseph Pierini, who went 2-for-4 on the day with a double. Junior Ty Jackson put together a noteworthy effort as well, going 2-for-4.
The Gators (45-16) added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth inning when Luke Heyman brought Wyatt Langford across from second with a two-out RBI single.
“Tip of the hat to the University of Florida. They are as good as they are because of the environment,” said FAMU coach Jamey Shouppe. “It is the way Florida does things, and you’ve got to tip the hat to them – that is why the NCAA allowed Florida to be the host site, and that is why they are the No. 2 team in the country.”
The last time Florida hosted FAMU, the Gators got things done in seven innings, outscoring the Rattlers, 17-7 during the regular season.
The Rattlers will play in an elimination game on Saturday against UConn at noon EST.
