HOOVER, Ala. – Bobby Boser belted a go-ahead home run and Hayden Yost added two extra-base hits as the Florida Gators rolled past the South Carolina Gamecocks 11-3 in their SEC Tournament opener Tuesday night at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
Florida moved to 38-19 and 16-15 in the SEC under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan. South Carolina dropped to 28-29 and 6-25 in conference play during Paul Mainieri’s first season.
South Carolina struck first in the top of the first inning, when designated hitter Jase Woita grounded into a double play, allowing Blake Jackson to score from third for a 1-0 lead.
BOBBY GO BOOM 💥#GoGators // SECN pic.twitter.com/imuQeNLbIb
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) May 20, 2025
Florida answered in the bottom of the second. Shortstop Bobby Boser launched a three-run home run to center field, scoring Justin Nadeau and Landon Stripling to make it 3-1.
“I take a lot of pride in being able to lead this offense,” Boser said postgame. “I was just looking for a heater up in the zone—something I could get the guys going with.”
DONAY DEMO No. 17 🏗️#GoGators // SECN pic.twitter.com/X0Dkve3uuw
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) May 20, 2025
Brody Donay padded the Gators’ lead with a solo home run to right field in the third, his 17th of the season, extending the score to 4-1.
Cyr & Yosty smoke B2B doubles ♨️#GoGators // SECN pic.twitter.com/uk6dfFYtl5
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) May 20, 2025
Later in the same inning, Hayden Yost drove an RBI double to right, scoring Blake Cyr and stretching the margin to 5-1.
The BO stays HOT 🥵#GoGators // SECN pic.twitter.com/i4HRmTaqFk
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) May 20, 2025
Ty Evans continued the rally in the fourth with a two-out RBI double to right-center, bringing home Brendan Lawson for a 6-1 Gators advantage.
HAY YO, THAT'S GONE 🚀#GoGators // SECN pic.twitter.com/wBU67POxDA
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) May 20, 2025
Florida’s bats didn’t cool off. In the fifth, Yost added another run with a solo home run to right-center, putting the Gators up 7-1.
South Carolina briefly rallied in the top of the eighth with RBI doubles from Kevin Scobey and Josiah Carrion, cutting the lead to 7-3. But Florida sealed the game in the bottom half of the frame, scoring four more runs on three hits, a walk, and an error.
“Anytime you can score right after your opponent, that swings the momentum back to your dugout,” said O’Sullivan. “That eighth inning was really important for us.”
Brandon Rowland earned the win in relief, tossing 3.2 innings with no walks and two strikeouts. Starter Brandon Barlow gave up just one run over 3.2 innings in a no-decision.
“We needed them to step up,” Boser said of Florida’s pitching staff. “They did their job.”
“You’ve got to have depth in this tournament,” Evans added. “Guys like Rowland and Rodriguez coming in and shoving—that’s what gives us a shot to keep going.”
Florida will face No. 7 seed Ole Miss in the second round of the tournament on Wednesday, May 21, at 7:30 p.m. EDT on SEC Network.
“We’re just excited about the opportunity to play Ole Miss tomorrow,” O’Sullivan said. “We’re a different team than when we faced them earlier this season—and they are too.”
2025 SEC Baseball Tournament Schedule
Tuesday-Sunday, May 20-25. Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, Hoover, Ala.
All Game Start Times Are Eastern Daylight Time
*Second Game Of Each Session Will Begin Approximately 30 Minutes After The Conclusion Of First Game
Tuesday, May 20 – First Round
Game 1: No. 9 Alabama 4, No. 16 Missouri 1
*Game 2: No. 12 Oklahoma 5, No. 13 Kentucky 1
Game 3: No. 10 Florida 11 vs. No. 15 South Carolina 3
*Game 4: No. 11 Mississippi State vs. No. 14 Texas A&M – Moved to May 21
Wednesday, May 21 – Second Round
Game 4: No. 11 Mississippi State vs. No. 14 Texas A&M – 9:30 a.m. – SECN
*Game 5: No. 9 Alabama vs. No. 8 Tennessee – 12:30 p.m. – SECN
Game 6: No. 12 Oklahoma vs. No. 5 Georgia – 4:30 p.m. – SECN
*Game 7: Winner Game 3 vs. No. 7 Ole Miss – 7:30 p.m. – SECN
Thursday, May 22 – Quarterfinals
Game 8: Winner Game 4 vs. No. 6 Auburn – 11 a.m. – SECN
*Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. No. 1 Texas – 3 p.m. – SECN
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. No. 4 Vanderbilt – 7 p.m. – SECN
Friday, May 23 – Quarterfinals
Game 11: Winner Game 7 vs. No. 2 Arkansas – 4 p.m. – SECN
*Game 12: Winner Game 8 vs. No. 3 LSU – 7 p.m. – SECN
Saturday, May 24 – Semifinals
Game 13: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10 – 1 p.m. – SECN
*Game 14: Winner Game 11 vs. Winner Game 12 – 4 p.m. – SECN
Sunday, May 25 – Championship Game
Game 15: Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 14 – 3 p.m. – ESPN2
SEC MLBPipeline.com Top 150 Draft Prospects
No. 7 – OF – Jace LaViolette – Texas A&M
No. 8 – RHP – Kyson Witherspoon – Oklahoma
No. 9 – LHP – Kade Anderson – Louisiana State
No. 10 – LHP – Liam Doyle – Tennessee
No. 16 – 2B – Gavin Kilen – Tennessee
No. 20 – OF/C – Ike Irish – Auburn
No. 24 – SS – Wehiwa Aloy – Arkansas
No. 28 – OF – Max Belyeu – Texas
No. 33 – RHP – Riley Quick – Alabama
No. 35 – 1B/3B – Andrew Fischer – Tennessee
No. 36 – OF/3B – Ethan Petry – South Carolina
No. 44 – LHP – Zach Root – Arkansas
No. 54 – SS/3B – Dean Curley – Tennessee
No. 55 – RHP – A.J. Russell – Tennessee
No. 60 – OF – Charles Davalan – Arkansas
No. 66 – 2B – Daniel Dickinson – Louisiana State
No. 69 – RHP – Marcus Phillips – Tennessee
No. 72 – LHP – J.D. Thompson – Vanderbilt
No. 78 – RHP – Chase Shores – Louisiana State
No. 79 – LHP- Jared Spencer – Texas
No. 90 – 1B – Jared Jones – Louisiana State
No. 99 – LHP – Justin Lamkin – Texas A&M
No. 100 – OF – RJ Austin – Vanderbilt
No. 101 – C – Easton Carmichael – Oklahoma
No. 102 – LHP – Pico Kohn – Mississippi State
No. 113 – RHP – Nate Snead – Tennessee
No. 116 – RHP – Mason Morris – Mississippi
No. 117 – SS – Jalin Morris – Texas
No. 123 – OF/1B – Tre Phelps – Georgia
No. 131 – SS – Colby Shelton – Florida
No. 133 – RHP – Malachi Witherspoon – Oklahoma
No. 141 – 3B – Brent Iredale – Arkansas
