COLLEGE WORLD SERIES at CHARLES SCHWAB FIELD
Texas A&M 6, Alligators 0
WHAT HAPPENED: The playoff magic finally ran out for the Gators, who entered the NCAA Tournament better than .500 and reeled off five straight wins in postseason games until losing to the Aggies on Wednesday night. Texas A&M starter Justin Lamkin dominated the Gators for the second time in the CWS, this time pitching five shutout innings. He allowed three hits and struck out nine. Meanwhile, the Gators starter Liam Peterson was only able to retire one of the five batters he faced, walking four Aggies before being replaced by Fisher Jameson with one out and the bases loaded in the Aggies’ two-run first inning. Texas A&M (52-13) advanced to face Tennessee in the CWS Championship Series. The Gators close the season with a 36-30 record after winning eight of 11 games in the playoffs.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Not many choices for the Gators, but when Jac Caglianone Picked to start the bottom of the eighth, he recorded his 104th hit of the season. This ties the school’s single-season record, shared by former teammates. Marc Kiger And Pat Osborn for 22 years. Kiger and Osborn accomplished the feat during the 2002 season.
KEY MOMENT: Texas A&M led 3-0 in the top of the sixth when Gators head coach Kevin O’Sullivan called closer Brandon Neely to keep the game close with a runner on base and one out. Neely was superb in the postseason and pitched well again Wednesday night, but Caden Sorrell hit a 3-2 pitch from Neely for a two-run homer to make it 5-0 and put the game out of reach on a night when the Gators struggled offensively.
IN THE HONOR: Caglianone led in both games Wednesday, the first time in his UF career that he was hitting at the top of the leaderboard. He went 2-for-2 with a single, three walks (one intentional), a stolen base and three runs scored in Florida’s 15-4 win over Kentucky. He went 2-for-4 in the nightcap and reached base safely in 14 of 19 plate appearances in the CWS. That’s good for a whopping .737 on-base percentage.
AMAZING STATUS: The Gators went 10 for 18 with runners in scoring position in wins over NC State and Kentucky. They finished 2 of 23 with runners in scoring position in CWS’s two losses to the Aggies. UF was 1 of 11 in Saturday’s 3-2 loss and 1 of 12 on Wednesday.
HE SAID IT : “We’ve had a tremendous year. There have been a lot of ups and downs. Our players have persevered through a lot of tough times. I’m terribly proud of our team. I know a lot of our guys are extremely disappointed, but speaking from my heart, I am terribly proud of them, of what they were able to accomplish and have this experience here in Omaha — Gators head coach. Kevin O’Sullivan
IN NUMBERS: 38 — NCAA strikeouts for Neely in the NCAA tournament. 2:25 p.m. — Strikeouts every nine innings for Neely in seven NCAA Tournament appearances. 145 — Consecutive games the Gators had scored until they were shut out by the Aggies. Florida hadn’t been shut out since a 10-0 loss to Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament on May 26, 2022.
FOLLOWING: Florida returns home on Thursday. O’Sullivan and his team will soon begin preparations for the 2025 season, which opens next February at Condron Family Ballpark.
NOTABLES
- The Gators reached the College World Series semifinals for the second straight season.
- Florida finished tied for third in the NCAA Tournament field.
- Florida has appeared in the College World Series for the 14th time in program history and the ninth time under head coach John F. Kevin O’Sullivan.
- O’Sullivan has led the Gators to Omaha in nine of the last 14 playoff series.
- The Gators went 8-3 in the NCAA Tournament, highlighted by wins over No. 16 Oklahoma State (two), No. 3 Clemson (two), No. 11 NC State and No. 2 Kentucky.
- Florida finished the season at 36-30 and went 10-4 down the stretch.
- Jac Caglianone’s 104 hits this year tied Florida’s single-season program record alongside Mark Kiger (2002) and Pat Osborn (2002).
- Caglianone finished 2-for-4 with two singles in his final collegiate game to post a .419 batting average this year.
- Caglianone set the program’s all-time record with his 75th career home run and 35th big fly of the season earlier in the day in the win over No. 2 Kentucky.
- Caglianone concluded his collegiate career with an active streak of 52 consecutive games on base.
- Caglianone hit safely in 62 of 66 games while reaching safely in all but one game.
- Caglianone went 16-for-36 with six homers, four doubles, 16 runs, 14 RBIs, 17 walks and five strikeouts in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
- He totaled 11 hits and four home runs all-time in the College World Series.
- Florida’s bullpen went 1-0 in the 2024 College World Series with a 2.39 ERA, 26 1/3 innings pitched, 14 hits allowed, seven runs, 33 strikeouts and eight walks.
- Brandon Neely finished the 2024 NCAA Tournament with seven appearances for a 1.88 ERA, 24 innings pitched, five runs allowed, 15 hits, six walks and 38 strikeouts.
- Neely has pitched 23.5% of Florida’s postseason innings (24 of 102).
- Fisher Jameson faced a minimum of 11 batters before allowing a double in the fifth inning.
- Jameson allowed just one run in 4 2/3 innings on three hits and five strikeouts.
- Florida’s streak of 144 consecutive games – the third longest in program history (May 27, 2022-June 19, 2024) – was snapped in the final game of the 2024 season.
- The Gators are 137-88 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
- Florida is 27-28 in the College World Series.
- Florida is now 14-18 all-time against Texas A&M (1-6 neutral).
- The Gators are 13-12 against the Aggies under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan (0-2 SCF).
- Wednesday evening’s official attendance was 25,429 people.
—Sullivan Bortner contributed to this report.