Updated May 21, 2026, 8:02 p.m. ET
The Florida Gators defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 13-3 in eight innings during the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.Florida’s offense produced multiple home runs and extra-base hits, including a five-run fifth inning.Gators pitcher Liam Peterson threw five innings, allowing one run and striking out eight batters.Florida advances to the semifinals and will face Georgia on Saturday.
Florida baseball defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide, 13-3, in eight innings on Thursday in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.
The Gators broke a 0-0 tie in the fourth with solo home runs by Brendan Lawson and Ethan Surowiec, then exploded for five more runs in the next frame. Hayden Yost, Kyle Jones and Blake Cyr all had extra-base hits to drive in runners, and Surowiec added one more to his total while reaching on an error.
Liam Peterson pitched five innings of one-run ball, working around seven base hits throughout the day. Peterson struck out eight while walking none, and he finished his outing with a pair of 100-mph fastballs. The lone run he allowed came off a sacrifice fly in the fifth.
Caden McDonald took over for Peterson in the sixth and struck out the first four batters he faced. He nearly finished off the game in the seventh after Florida added four more runs in the top of the inning, but a two-run homer kept things going.
Florida’s four-run outburst was the product of three doubles and a walk. Lawson, Surowiec and McDonald had the extra-base hits. Karson Bowen added an RBI with a sacrifice fly to put Florida up by 10 runs.
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After Alabama extended the game, Florida got its two runs back with another double from McDonald, who had a team-high three runs batted in on the day. Ricky Reeth closed things out in the bottom of the eighth.
Florida faces Georgia at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday in semifinal action.
Ricky Reeth came in to close things out for Florida. He struck out Hines on a slider; that’s the fourth time for him today. Holt grounded out to third, but Vaughn kept things going with a single through the right side. Steele struck out looking to end. Florida advances to the semifinals on Saturday.
Evan Steckmesser is now pitching for Alabama. He got Lawson looking at a fastball, but Cyr got on base with a single through the left side. Steckmesser was only in to face the lefty, so Alabama turned to Owen Sarna.
Surowiec smacked a ground-rule double into left field to welcome Sarna to the game. McDonald also went to the left-field corner, driving both runs in and putting the run rule back in play.
Austin Morris came in to get the final two outs of the inning. Let’s see if Florida can hold on here for the run-rule win. (M8: Florida 13, Alabama 3)
Caden McDonald came back out for Florida in the seventh. He struck out Steele looking with yet another fastball. That’s four straight to start his outing. Fowler walked, giving Alabama its first baserunner against McDonald. Lebron lined out to second, and Fowler was nearly doubled up at first.
Neal launched a no-doubt two-run homer to keep the game alive. A pitch hit Torres, but Lemm grounded out to first to keep it an eight-run game. (E7: Florida 11, Alabama 3)
Florida looking for a run-rule victory
Ashton Crowther took over for Heiberger in the seventh, and it went badly for him. Lawson doubled into right-center after fouling one off his kneecap and taking a few minutes to collect himself. It was scary to watch him dive into second, and he was certainly limping a bit after. Cyr walked, setting up a two-run double from Surowiec.
McDonald caught one down the left field line for an RBI double of his own, putting Florida one run away from the run rule.
Sam Mitchell took over for Crowther, hoping to prevent that 11th run from scoring. He couldn’t get it done. Bowen flied out to center, but it was more than enough to McDonald in without a throw to the plate.
Stripling and Kurland both singled, but Yost and Jones struck out swinging to end the inning there. (M7: Florida 11, Alabama 1)
The doctor is in; C-Mac strikes out the side
Caden McDonald took over for Peterson in the sixth. He struck out the side, freezing all three batters on a heater. Hines stared at 93 mph, Holt looked at 94 and Vaughn watched 95 go by. That’s some shutdown stuff from the two-way stud who has struggled at the plate in Hoover. (E6: Florida 7, Alabama 1)
Double play kills big inning for Florida
It looked like another big inning was brewing for the Gators after Heiberger hit Bowen and gave up a single to Stripling. Kurland flied out to left-center, keeping the runners from advancing, but Yost walked on four straight pitches to bring the top of the order back up. Unfortunately, Jones grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to kill the threat. (M6: Florida 7, Alabama 1)
Peterson took a comebacker off the meaty part of his left leg for a leadoff single. Fortunately, he gave a thumbs up to the dugout and didn’t need to get looked at by the training staff. He’ll still have a bruise there tomorrow.
He bounced back with a strikeout on Fowler. Peterson is still sitting 97 mph on his fastball, 80-plus pitches in. Lebron lined a double into right-center, putting runners on the corners, and Neal flied out to center for a sacrifice fly and Alabama’s first run.
Kevin O’Sullivan came out to talk with Peterson, but he clearly wasn’t making a move yet. Peterson should’ve been out of the inning with a strikeout on Torres, but Bowen couldn’t find the ball after it bounced in the dirt and straight up. Torres made it to first without a throw, extending the inning. Peterson went right at Lemm, touching 100 mph in back-to-back pitches, including the third strike to get him swinging. (E5: Florida 7, Alabama 1)
Florida strikes for five in fifth
A leadoff infield single from Bowen nearly went unrewarded, but a two-out rally doubled the Gators’ lead. Credit to Alabama’s second baseman for nearly making a great play. The throw was just a hair late. Stripling flied out to right, and Kurland grounded out to short. Lebron made a nice backhanded play to get the out, which Florida challenged unsuccessfully.
That’s when Yost and Jones came through with RBI hits into right field. Yost doubled over the right fielder’s head, and Jones dropped one in for a second run. That was the end of the day for Fay. Matthew Heiberger is the new pitcher.
Heiberger plunked Lawson in the middle of the back, which is a bit worrisome since the Florida shortstop dealt with back spasms earlier this year.
Cyr tripled into right field to score two more runs. Again, Neal couldn’t make the play. He’s a catcher playing the outfield to get his bat in the lineup, but it’s proving costly today.
Surowiec sent a grounder to Lebron at short, but he couldn’t make the play thanks to a weird hop. It goes down as Lebron’s 18th error of the season, and it’s another run for Florida. McDonald flied out to center, ending the five-run frame. (M5: Florida 7, Alabama 0)
Peterson posts a fourth straight zero on the board
The pattern remains the same for Peterson: one baserunner, no runs. He got Lemm to ground out to second, an easy play for Kurland. Hines battled for the second time, but he ended up striking out again on a slider. Holt got the two-out single into center field, but Vaughn lined out to Surowiec at third. If it works, it works. Peterson is at 73 pitches. Florida could send him back out for the fifth, but preserving him for the championship is an option, too. (E4: Florida 2, Alabama 0)
Lawson, Surowiec go deep to give Florida a lead
Florida teed off on Fay in the fourth. Lawson and Surowiec hit no-doubt homers, both going 440-plus feet. Lawson’s came after a leadoff flyout from Jones.
Surowiec’s bomb went three feet further than Lawson’s (444 feet), after a Blake Cyr strikeout. Caden McDonald struck out swinging to end the inning, but Florida has the lead! (M4: Florida 2, Alabama 0)
Peterson continues to allow a baserunner each inning, but he’s been sharp working around it. Fowler grounded out up the middle for the first out. Peterson tipped it, but Lawson had time to get to it and make a strong throw for a 1-6-3 out.
Lebron sent one down the third base line, but it stayed in the infield for a single. He moved to second on a potential double-play ball that didn’t have a chance since he was off and running. Lebron swiped third, too, but he was stranded there by Torres, who struck out swinging at a slider. (E3: Florida 0, Alabama 0)
It only took three pitches for Fay to get two outs in the third. Landon Stripling sent a tricky groundball to the right side, but Vaughn fielded and got the ball to Fay covering first. Cade Kurland grounded out back to the pitcher, and Hayden Yost lost a seven-pitch at-bat on a heater inside that was called for a strikeout. That one might have been worth challenging, but he did not. (M3: Florida 0, Alabama 0)
Liam Peterson holds Alabama scoreless in second
Liam Peterson has his good stuff today. The slider is working well, and it’s the pitch he used to open the bottom of the second with a strikeout on Eric Hines. Brennan Holt caught a triple-digit fastball off the cap, but it dropped in the Bermuda Triangle in the left side of the infield for a base hit. No problem. Luke Vaughn flied out to the warning track and center, and Peyton Steele struck out on another slider to strand the runner. (E2: Florida 0, Alabama 0)
The no-hitter has been broken up! After 10 hitless innings against Tyler Fay, Florida finally notched a hit. Ethan Surowiec led off the second with a single into left-center, but Caden McDonald capped a ball 111 mph to second base for a 4-6-3 double play. Karson Bowen tapped one back to the pitcher for a quick third out. (M2: Florida 0, Alabama 0)
Peterson works around two-out jam
Liam Peterson got the first two outs in the bottom of the first on five pitches. The first was a loud flyout to the right field warning track from Bryce Fowler, and Justin Lebron popped up to shallow right — second baseman Cade Kurland played it.
That’s when Peterson ran into some two-out trouble, giving up singles to Brady Neal and Jason Torres. Both balls went back up the middle, but the latter was stopped on the infield by Brendan Lawson, who made a nice diving stab but couldn’t get the ball out of his glove.
John Lemm struck out swinging at a 100-mph heater to end the threat. Peterson is working 98-99 mph with his fastball and 90 mph on his slider early on. (E1: Florida 0, Alabama 0)
Tyler Fay picks up where he left off vs. Florida
The last time Florida faced Tyler Fay, the Gators were no-hit. He picked up right where he left off, retiring the side in order. Fay knew Florida would be aggressive against him, and started with a slider. He’s leaning on the breaking ball early, and it’s fooling some of Florida’s best bats. Kyle Jones and Blake Cyr struck out swinging at a slider, and Brendan Lawson lined out to first. (M1: Florida 0, Alabama 0)
Watch Florida vs. Alabama Florida vs. Alabama starting pitchers, lineupsFlorida: Liam Peterson (2-5, 4.00 ERA)Alabama: Tyler Fay (9-3, 4.43 ERA)Florida Gators starting lineupAlabama starting lineupWhat time is Florida vs. Alabama?Date: Thursday, May 21Start time: ~4:30 p.m. ETWhat channel is Florida vs. Alabama?
The Florida at Alabama game starts at 4:30 p.m. ET from the Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Alabama.
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