Sweep At Miami Propels Florida To No. 1

Annually one of college baseball’s best rivalries, Florida vs. Miami had even more buzz to it this season thanks to the two teams entering the weekend both ranked in the top three. The Gators were No. 2 and the Hurricanes were No. 3 – the first time the teams would play a regular season series with them both ranked in the top three since 1992.

Miami came into the season with momentum after its return to the NCAA Tournament last year following rare back-to-back misses, and with the rivalry being played in Coral Gables, the Hurricanes had what felt like a golden opportunity to win the series for the first time since 2014. Miami sold out Mark Light Stadium for all three games by Thursday and trotted out its heavy hitters to throw ceremonial first pitches every night – Mike Piazza on Friday, Alex Rodriguez on Saturday and Alex Fernandez on Sunday.

It wasn’t to be. Florida rolled into Coral Gables and emerged with a sweep, beating Miami 2-1 in 11 innings on Friday, 7-4 in 10 innings on Saturday and 5-3 on Sunday. It was a tense, tightly contested series where one pitch or one swing could have easily shifted the outcome.

But the Gators (8-0) found a way to win every night, pushing them to No. 1 in the Top 25. They swept the Hurricanes in Coral Gables for the first time since 2012 and have now won the rivalry series six years in a row.