Updated March 21, 2026, 7:39 p.m. ET
Florida dropped the series against Alabama with an 8-4 loss on Saturday afternoon.
Aidan King had his worst start of the season, giving up four earned runs on three hits and four walks. King only had three walks coming into the game, so he clearly wasn’t at his best. Jackson Barberi pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief, giving up two runs on a homer. Billy Barlow and Eli Blair each recorded two outs while allowing one apiece.
It’s Alabama’s first series win over Florida since 2008. The Crimson Tide hasn’t swept the Gators since 2002.
Perhaps the most important news coming out of this game involves Florida’s star shortstop, Brennan Lawson. He left the game in the third inning and was replaced by Kolt Myers. There’s no word on what led to Lawson’s removal, but it’s never a good sign to see the team’s best player exit early.
Aidan King saw his first earned run of the year cross in the bottom of the first. He walked Justin Lebron — King’s fourth of the year — and a line-drive single from Brady Neal set up an RBI sacrifice bunt from Jason Torres.
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Karson Bowen tied the game in the next half inning with a solo home run to left field. That’s Florida’s first hit of the series. The Gators were 0-for-30 coming into that at-bat.
Florida took the lead in the third thanks to a pair of base knocks from Cade Kurland and Blake Cyr. Kyle Jones walked to move Kurland over to second off a leadoff single up the middle, and Cyr drove Kurland in with a line drive down the right field line.
Neal and Torres repeated what they did in the first inning for two runs in the third. King walked a pair to open the frame, doubling his season total coming into the game. It looks like both teams came to play, so it might come down to which bullpen executes better.
Neal notched his third hit of the day in the fifth, driving in Fowler to give Alabama a 4-2 lead. Justin Lebron hit a two-run homer in the seventh off Jackson Barberi to double that lead. Brennan Holt doubled down the right field line for a run in the eighth, and Neal notched his third RBI of the day on a groundout.
Florida made a brief comeback attempt in the ninth, scoring a pair of runs on a sacrifice fly from Jones and a double from Cyr. It wasn’t enough, though.
Florida managed to score two runs in the top of the ninth, but the Gators couldn’t complete the comeback. Surowiec led off with a single to the opposite field. Kurland reached on an error by Torres at third, just one play after he made a tremendous catch in foul territory to get Stanford out.
Miller walked on four pitches, which ended the day for Heberger. Hagan Banks took over and traded an out for a run on a sac fly from Jones. Cyr doubled into left to score Kurland, but Myers couldn’t reach base. He flied out to center field despite going up 3-0 to start the at-bat, ending the game. Keep in mind that Myers came to the plate a few times where it would have been nice to have Lawson.
Crimson Tide extend lead (E8: BAMA 8, UF 2)
Barlow went back to work, with Ashton Wilson taking over in right. Barlow struck out Osterhous with a breaking ball, but Vaughn doubled off the wall in left field.
Eli Blair replaced Barlow and immediately gave up a run. Holt doubled down the right field line, bringing in Vaughn. Blair walked Fowler on five pitches and hit Lebron. A groundout to first from Neal scored Holt. Wilson made a snowcone, diving catch in right to end the inning. That grab saved two runs.
Florida goes 0-3 with runners on base (M8: BAMA 6, UF 2)
Heiberger got himself into trouble with a leadoff, four-pitch walk on Jones and hitting Cyr with a pitch. That would have been a great time for Lawson to hit, but Myers was there in his place. The redshirt freshman struck out, and Bowen lined out to short. Alabama nearly turned a double play, but the second baseman couldn’t hold on to the catch as he touched the bag.
Caden McDonald came in for Strayer, avoiding the left-on-left matchup, but the pinch-hitter went down looking at strike three. Alabama is three outs away from taking its first series against Florida since 2008.
Lebron homers to put Tide up four (E7: BAMA 6, UF 2)
Barberi couldn’t repeat his first inning of work in the seventh. He got Holt to ground out to first, but Fowler doubled off him to the gap in right-center. Lebron got his first hit of the series, and it was a big one. Lebron crushed one over the left field wall, his 10th home run of the year,
Barberi retired Neal for the first time today, but that’s when his command started to slip. Torres singled to left-center after going up 2-0, and Lemm walked on five pitches, prompting a pitching change. Billy Barlow came in and struck out Plattner with a slider in the dirt to end the inning.
Florida can’t punish the bullpen (M7: BAMA 4, UF 2)
Matthew Heiberger took over for Adams on the mound and got the Gators 1-2-3. Stanford flied out to center field, Kurland flied out to left and Miller grounded out to short to end the inning. All of it was pretty routine.
Barberi holds the score (E6: BAMA 4, UF 2)
Jackson Barberi took over for King in the bottom of the sixth. He made quick work of the first two batters, Lenmm and Plattner, getting both to ground out. Miller made a nice play at third for the second out. Barberi lost a seven-pitch battle with Osterhouse and walked him. Osterhouse stole second, but that’s as far as he got. Vaughn grounded into a 6-3 out to end the inning.
Florida strands another (M6: BAMA 4, UF 2)
Myers opened up the sixth with a double to shallow center field. Fowler misplayed it, stepping back before coming in, and he couldn’t make the diving catch. Give credit to Myers for hustling on the play to get into scoring position. Bowen couldn’t move him over, grounding out to short. Strayer and Surowiec struck out swinging to strand Myers, though.
Alabama creates separation (E5: BAMA 4, UF 2)
Holt walked for the second time today. King is now at four on the day, one more than he threw in his first five starts. Fowler almost hit into a double play, but he beat the throw to first, which ended up being important. Bowen almost got him on the back pick down to first, but Surowiec couldn’t make the throw to second in time, and Kurland didn’t get the tag down.
Lebron moved Fowler over to third on a deep sacrifice fly to left field, and Neal notched his third hit and second RBI of the day. Torres popped up to end the inning, but that’s a critical insurance run for the Crimson Tide.
Gators can’t take advantage of error (M5: BAMA 3, UF 2)
Kurland took the ball for a ride to lead off the inning, but Fowler made a diving catch to rob him of extra bases just short of the warning track. Miller struck out swinging for the second out of the inning, but Jones kept things going by reaching on an error at third. Jones swiped second to move into scoring position. Adams had him picked off, but threw it away toward first.
Neither error made a difference as Cyr lined out to center field.
King works quickly for 1-2-3 frame (E4: BAMA 3, UF 2)
King got a quick first out, as Plattner popped out to second base on the first pitch. Kurland was camped under it, but Myers called him off to make his first putout as a shortstop. Osterhous grounded out to first, unassisted, as Surowiec made the play on a high chopper himself.
King finished off the inning with a three-pitch strikeout on Vaugh. He got him swinging at a slider out of the zone. A nine-pitch inning is great for King, who is at 66 total through four innings.
Gators’ offense stalls in fourth (M4: BAMA 3, UF 2)
Bowen sent another ball into the outfield to lead off the fourth, but this one didn’t clear the wall. Strayer swung at a full-count fastball up in the zone for strike three. Surowiec kept the inning going, working a full count and singling through the right side, but Stanford grounded into an inning-ending fielder’s choice.
Alabama fights back (E3: BAMA 3, UF 2)
King walked the nine-hole hitter, Brennan Holt. Walks are uncharacteristic of King. He had three all season coming into this game and already has two today, so Sully went out to talk to him. It didn’t help much. King walked Fowler on four pitches. A double steal moved to into scoring position for Alabama’s best hitter.
King managed to strike out Lebron, who isn’t having a great series, but Neal singled into left to tie the game up. Torres followed up with his second RBI sac bunt of the day, scoring Fowler. Lemm grounded out back to King to end the inning.
Florida takes the lead (M3: UF 2, BAMA 1)
Cade Kurland singled through the middle for a leadoff base hit and his first knock in nearly a month. Kurland missed 12 games with a Grade 1 oblique strain, but he’s getting back to his old self as March winds down. Sam Miller swung over a high slider for an out, but Jones walked on five pitches to put two on.
Cyr came up big with a line drive through the right side. Kurland rounded third as if there were no question and slid into home safe to give Florida its first lead of the series.
Cyr got picked off at first. He jumped at the left-hander’s first move and was caught diving back into first. That’s not great, but what’s more concerning is Kolt Myers pinch-hitting for Lawson. That indicates some sort of injury, hopefully nothing too serious. Either way, it’s a major loss for Florida in this game. Myers popped up to shortstop to end the inning.
King retired Crimson Tide in order (E2: UF 1, BAMA 1)
King got a much-needed 1-2-3 inning in the second. Will Plattner, Justin Osterhouse and Luke Vaughn went down in order. Plattner and Osterhouse flied out to center and left, respectively, and Vaughn struck out on three pitches. Vaughn whiffed at a high fastball.
Bowen evens up the score with a Florida HR (M2: UF 1, BAMA 1)
Karson Bowen recorded Florida’s first hit, run and RBI of the series with a home run to left field. Zane Adams hung an offspeed pitch, and Bowen got all of it to tie the game up.
Strayer struck out swinging at three pitches. He wasn’t seeing the breaking ball very well in the left-on-left matchup. Ethan Surowiec hit a big-league flyout to right field. He got under a slider and sent it a mile high. Cole Stanford skied one into foul territory just to the right of first base for the third out.
Alabama strikes first (E1: BAMA 1, UF 0)
Aidan King got Bryce Fowler swinging at a high pitch. It looked almost like a changeup, but that’s not where he usually locates it. Maybe some split action. He lost Justin Lebron on a full-count walk. His two-seamer might have caught the outer corner, but Lebron is going to get the benefit of the doubt from the umpires there more often than not. It was a good take, regardless.
King threw over to first a couple of times to keep Lebron honest. It didn’t matter, though. Brady Neal lined one into left-center with Lebron on the run to put men on first and third for Alabama. It might have been a hit-and-run call, but Neal got a center-cut pitch he would have swung at anyway. Torres bunted to bring Lebron in. That’s the first earned run of the season charged against King.
John Lemm lined out to right field to end the inning. Lemm made good contact, but Cash Strayer was there to track it down.
Florida still searching for first hit of series (M1: UF 0, BAMA 0)
Klye Jones attempted to lay down a bunt in the first at-bat of the game, likely looking to get a base hit out of the way and take the weight off Florida’s shoulders. It didn’t work, as he threw out, but the umpire called him back to the plate after deciding it was a foul ball. Jones worked a full count, but he flied out softly to left field for an out anyway.
Blake Cyr is in the No. 2 spot of the lineup today. Kevin O’Sullivan is looking to shake things up and spark Florida’s offense. He rolled over on a soft tapper to Jason Torres at third, who made a nice running play.
Brendan Lawson grounded out to second base to end the inning. That’s 10 no-hit innings for Florida to start this series.
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NOTES: Aidan King got his bounce-back performance last week after a pair of mildly concerning outings. Any injury concerns should be fading three weeks removed from the cramps that led to a third-inning pull against Miami, and the five unearned runs against High Point feel like an outlier. He went six innings with nine strikeouts, one walk, and two hits against South Carolina. His 0.00 ERA leads the nation. What more is there to say?
Zane Adams has taken a step forward as a fourth-year junior. His fastball velocity has jumped from 89-91 mph to 92-94 mph, and he’ll touch 95 in the early innings. His changeup continues to look plus, at 76-79 with good horizontal and vertical movement. His primary breaking ball is a high-70s curve that moves down, and he can throw an 89-mph cutter, too.
He looked stellar in the first two weeks, striking out 15 with no walks and allowing two runs over 11 innings. Since then, Oregon State got to him for four runs on seven hits and a walk, North Florida scored two off five hits and two walks, and he opened SEC play with a loss after giving up five runs (four earned) on six hits and two walks. He struck out just four in each of those appearances and went no more than five innings.
His batting average against sits at .263 on the year, and his rising ERA of 4.38 suggests some vulnerability. If Florida jumps on him early, it could be a long bullpen day for the Crimson Tide.
Alabama Crimson Tide starting lineupWhat channel is Florida at Alabama?Date:Â Saturday, March 21Start time:Â 3 p.m. ETChannel: SEC NetworkStream:Â ESPN+
The Florida at Alabama game starts at 3 p.m. ET from Sewell-Thommas Stadium, aka “The Joe,” in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Other Players to Watch
The name to know this week is Justin Lebron, a 2024 First Team All-Freshman. Teams have pitched the future first-round pick differently since he slugged 15 homers in the first 20 games last year. His 1.132 OPS leads the Crimson Tide this season, as do his nine home runs, 26 hits, 20 steals and 22 RBIs. He can field at an All-Defensive Team level at shortstop, too.
Behind him are catchers John Lemm and Brady Neal, who both have an OPS of 1.000 or higher. Neal is more versatile and can play the outfield, giving Lemm chances to get behind the plate, and both can serve as designated hitters. Center fielder Bryce Fowler has hit well in the leadoff position, with a team-high .460 on-base percentage — 25 hits, 16 walks. Then there’s Jason Torres, who walks (19) almost as much as he strikes out (20) and is tied with Lebron at 22 RBIs.
Out of the bullpen, Evan Steckmesser (6.92 ERA, 13.0) and Sam Mitchell (4.76, 11.1) are the most-used arms. Steckmesser is one of a handful of lefties Alabama uses in relief, and he can pitch multiple innings. The other Southpaws Florida is likely to see are Matthew Heiberger (3.86, 11.2) and Ashton Crowther (3.68, 7.1). Freshman Luke Smyers (2.70, 10.0) and Bobby Alcock (2.02, 13.1) each have 13 strikeouts and sub-3.00 ERAs.
Series HistoryOVERALL72-61AT HOME37-20AWAY25-32NEUTRAL10-9Predictions
GAME 1: Florida, 5-3 (Actual score: Alabama, 6-0)
GAME 2: Florida, 6-1 (Updated Prediction: Florida 3, Alabama 2)
GAME 3: Alabama, 9-8
Florida dropped the opener and was no-hit, which drastically changes our predictions for this series. We’ll leave the previous prediction and add updates throughout the series moving forward. Aidan King should do better than Liam Peterson did on Friday, and it’s hard to imagine Florida getting no-hit twice in a row. Still, a closer score prediction is warranted.
PREDICTION: Florida hits better but trails until the late innings. Gators win, 3-2, in comeback fashion.
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