The No. 1 overall seed Florida Gators stayed alive in the 2017 NCAA softball tournament thanks to a 2-0 win over No. 16 Alabama on Friday night in Gainesville.
NCAA softball tournament 2017 scores: No. 1 Florida forces 3rd game against Alabama
UCLA clinched a spot in the Women’s College World Series
Photo: NCAA Softball
Florida lost the opener of this best-of-three super regional on Thursday, but rebounded on Friday thanks to a two-run home run by left fielder Amanda Lorenz in the third inning for the game’s only runs.
Delanie Gourley struck out eight in seven scoreless innings for the shutout win. These two teams will battle on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET for a berth in the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
There was one team that clinched a berth in the final eight. Out west, No. 5 UCLA beat No. 12 Mississippi, 1-0, to win the Los Angeles super regional two games to none.
Rachel Garcia, who threw a whopping 232 pitches in 11 innings in Thursday’s win, pitched the final four innings in relief for the Bruins on Friday to close it out, including striking out two in the final frame. This time, she threw 50 pitches.
Elsewhere, No. 10 Oklahoma and No. 7 Auburn were in a scoreless tie in the sixth inning when the Sooners rallied for two runs, the first on this RBI double by Nicole Pendley:
Oklahoma added two more runs in the seventh inning for a 4-0 win.
Friday scores
No. 1 Florida 2, No. 16 Alabama 0 (Series tied, 1-1)
No. 2 Arizona 3, No. 15 Baylor 2 (Arizona leads, 1-0)
No. 3 Oregon 4, No. 14 Kentucky 0 (Oregon leads, 1-0)
No. 4 Florida State 3, No. 13 LSU 1 (FSU leads, 1-0)
No. 5 UCLA 1, No. 12 Mississippi 0 (UCLA wins series, 2-0)
No. 6 Washington 10, No. 11 Utah 4 (Washington leads, 1-0)
No. 10 Oklahoma 4, No. 7 Auburn 0 (Oklahoma leads, 1-0)
No. 8 Tennessee 8, No. 9 Texas A&M 1 (Tennessee leads, 1-0)
Saturday schedule
1 p.m. - Auburn vs. Oklahoma, Game 2 (ESPN)
3 p.m. - LSU vs. Florida State, Game 2 (ESPN)
5 p.m. - Alabama vs. Florida, Game 3 (ESPN)
5 p.m. - Texas A&M vs. Tennessee, Game 2 (ESPN2)
7 p.m. - Oregon vs. Kentucky, Game 2 (ESPN)
9 p.m. - Arizona vs. Baylor, Game 2 (ESPN)
9 p.m. - Washington vs. Utah, Game 2 (ESPN2)
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