Gators Succumb In 0-2 Omaha Trip

OMAHA—Florida’s season ended not in a dogpile at TD Ameritrade Park, but with freshman Jonathan India sitting, stunned, at second base after he had been thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double. It was the final out in a 3-2 loss Tuesday to Texas Tech in an elimination game, sending Florida home from the College World Series without a victory.

Florida, the preseason No. 1 ranked team and No. 1 national seed in the NCAA tournament, was eliminated. A season that began with hopes of the first national championship in program history was over.

Center fielder Buddy Reed, who would later walk out of the stadium with his arm around the shoulders of India, said the loss hadn’t truly sunk in yet.

“There’s been so much invested in us and so much hard work we’ve put in throughout the course of my three years,” Reed said. “To see it all come to an end is really, really hard.”

Florida (52-16) was disappointed by its early exit from the CWS. But it wouldn’t let two losses in Omaha overshadow what it accomplished this season.

“If it ever gets to a point where getting to Omaha is a failure, then I think you’ve got to reevaluate where you’re at,” said coach Kevin O’Sullivan, who has guided the Gators to the CWS five times in nine seasons at Florida. “Disappointing, yes. Would have liked to have stayed a little longer, yes. But in a couple days we’ll reflect back and it’s been heck of a year for us.

“We’ve had some players that are leaving our program that have a chance to play for a long time. They’ve developed here in our program and they’re going to be really good players for a long time. So there’s a lot of positives. You just lose by a run.”

In fact, Florida’s last five losses in Omaha, including both this year, have come by one run. Athletic director Jeremy Foley said the Gators had a great season, regardless of the way it finished.

“Oftentimes, people take it for granted when you come here so many times, as we have, but it’s hard to do,” Foley said. “That’s a testimony to that guy we have right there (O’Sullivan). I’m really proud of him and proud he’s a Gator.”

From the time Florida’s 2015 season ended in Omaha, it knew expectations would be high for this year. It finished third in last year’s CWS and returned much of that team. Among the returners were Preseason All-Americans Peter Alonso, A.J. Puk, Reed, J.J. Schwarz and Logan Shore. To that group, the Gators added the No. 2 recruiting class in the country.

The Gators never shied from the weighty expectations. They remained No. 1 in the Top 25 for the first five weeks of the season until they lost a series at Kentucky. Following that loss, Florida dropped to No. 2 in the Top 25 with a series against Texas A&M, the new No. 1 team, looming. The Gators delivered an emphatic sweep of the Aggies, declaring once again they were the No. 1 team in the country.

“We thought we should be the No. 1 team regardless of anything, and we proved that,” Alonso said that weekend. “We were looking to make a statement and show what we can actually do.”

Florida didn’t remain No. 1 the rest of the season, but it never fell lower than fourth. The Gators entered the NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 national seed and looked every bit like the favorites as they swept through the Gainesville Regional.

Florida encountered more resistance during super regionals with rival Florida State coming to McKethan Stadium for the second year in a row. The Gators lost the first game, putting their season on the line, but responded with back-to-back shutouts to advance to the CWS.

“We’re the No. 1 team in the country for a reason,” Reed said after defeating Florida State. “If you look at our record, we’re 52-14, so that pretty much speaks for itself. We play to win every game.”

Though Florida went winless in Omaha, its 52 wins are still the most in the country and the second-most in program history. The Gators will end the year with the most wins of any team, unless Coastal Carolina reaches the CWS Finals and wins at least once in the series.

Even with all those wins, some may look at Florida’s season, which does not include a championship of any kind – it finished as the runner-up in the Southeastern Conference Tournament and fell from first to fourth in the conference standings on the final weekend of the regular season – as a flop. But the Gators have a different view of their 2016 season. It came to a disappointing end, short of the goal of a national championship, but they will not let it be seen as a failure.

“For me and my staff, and I mean everyone on my staff, our managers and administration, we put everything we have into it,” O’Sullivan said. “When you fall short, it’s disappointing, but it’s not a failure.”

Florida will now return to Gainesville, where year-end meetings and hugs await. The eight Gators drafted in the top 10 rounds will likely soon sign professional contracts, while the underclassmen will scatter around the country for summer ball.

Saying goodbye to this team is not a task any of the Gators are looking forward to.

“It’s going to be a tough couple days, but we’ll regroup,” O’Sullivan said, “and, like I said, I’m proud of my team, the way we played this year.”

Tuesday was not the finish the Gators had dreamed up. But when they are able to reflect back on their season with the benefit of perspective, they, like their coach, will find plenty to be proud of.

“Can’t take away from this season,” Reed said. “We’ve accomplished so much. You can’t take away from this season. The pitching was phenomenal this season. Our offense was there, and sometimes not there. But it doesn’t matter. We’ve won so many games this season, it’s just really hard right now.”