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Jac Caglianone, Brandon Neely carry Florida to win over NC State in CWS elimination game

Andrew Olson

By Andrew Olson

Published:

Jac Caglianone did not have the outing he hoped for, but he kept Florida alive in the College World Series with his bat on Monday. Caglianone hit a 3-run home run in UF’s 5-4 win over NC State to stave off elimination.

Brandon Neely was once again Florida’s pitching hero. The one-time starter who is back in the bullpen has now tossed 19 innings in the NCAA Tournament, allowing just 3 earned runs, coming up clutch in every round.

On Monday, Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan turned to Neely in the bottom of the 7th inning after reliever Jake Clemente walked leadoff hitter Eli Serrano III. Neely turned in 3 scoreless innings, striking out 6 NC State batters on 45 pitches (31 strikes).

Florida will play Tuesday evening against the loser of the Texas A&M-Kentucky winner’s bracket game. NC State is eliminated from the College World Series, going 0-2.

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How Monday’s elimination game played out

It was Caglianone’s turn to take the mound for Florida on Monday. Things did not go as the Gators planned.

Caglianone logged a 33-pitch 1st inning, allowing 1 earned run on 1 hit, 2 walks, 1 hit batsman and 1 strikeout. He would not return after getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the 1st.

On the ESPN broadcast, Caglianone was shown in the dugout pointing to his elbow area when talking to the Florida staff. It was noted that Caglianone’s velocity was alarmingly down in Monday’s game. The topic did not come up during coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s in-game interview.

Though he couldn’t go long on the mound, Caglianone still had an impact on the game, crushing a 3-run blast to give Florida a 4-1 lead in the top of the 2nd. His Monday blast was one for the record books.

NC State would cut the deficit in the bottom of the 3rd inning when Alec Makarewicz hit a 2-run home run, cutting it to 4-3.

Tyler Shelnut got Florida’s lead back to 2 runs with a solo homer in the top of the 5th, making it 5-3.

UF’s momentum did not last too long. Brandon Butterworth doubled to plate Garrett Pennington in the bottom half of the inning, making it a 1-run game again.

Both teams turned to the pen early on Monday.

When O’Sullivan determined Cags would not pitch further, he called on Cade Fisher. The game’s winning pitcher, Fisher went 4 innings in relief, allowing 3 earned runs on 3 hits and 1 walk with 3 strikeouts. Fisher totaled 75 pitches.

Jake Clemente served as a bridge between Fisher and Neely. He tossed a scoreless 6th inning without a hit before his 7th-inning walk and exit. Clemente logged just 10 pitches.

NC State went with Dominic Fritton as the starter. The game’s losing pitcher, he tossed 2 innings, allowing 4 earned runs on 2 hits with 3 walks and 3 strikeouts. He totaled 55 pitches.

Logan Whitaker delivered a standout outing in relief. He replaced Fritton in the 3rd inning and went the next 7 innings, allowing just 1 earned run on 2 hits, striking out 10 and walking 3.

Andrew Olson

Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.

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