College Roundup: Gators Survive, Hurricanes Rally

How The Top 25 Fared

(1) Florida: won, 8-7, vs. Eastern Michigan at Lakeland, Fla.

(2) Louisville: off

(3) Texas A&M: won, 11-0, vs. Prairie View A&M

(4) Virginia: off

(5) Oregon State: off

(6) Miami: won, 7-6, vs. St. Thomas (Fla.) in 10 innings

(7) Vanderbilt: won, 9-1, vs. Eastern Illinois

(8) Louisiana State: lost, 12-11, at Lamar

(9) Houston: off

(10) Louisiana-Lafayette: lost, 6-2, at Louisiana Tech

(11) California: off

(12) Oregon: off

(13) Oklahoma State: off

(14) Michigan: off

(15) UCLA: off

(16) Florida State: off

(17) Texas Christian: won, 17-3, vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff

(18) North Carolina State: cancelled vs. St. John’s

(19) Coastal Carolina: off

(20) North Carolina: off

(21) Mississippi: won, 4-3, vs. Arkansas State

(22) Kentucky: off

(23) Georgia Tech: won, 6-5, at Georgia Southern in 16 innings

(24) Mississippi State: off

(25) Oklahoma: won, 7-1, vs. Abilene Christian

A wild Wednesday night in college baseball was capped off by No. 1 Florida surviving a scare from Eastern Michigan, as the Gators won, 8-7, when Buddy Reed drove in the winning run on a walk-off catcher’s interference call. Florida, which improved to 5-0, needed a late comeback after Eastern Michigan scored five runs in the eighth inning to take a 7-4 lead. But the Gators scored twice in each of the next two innings to pull out the victory. Florida’s No. 2 ranked recruiting class was integral to the win. Freshman second baseman Deacon Liput (1-for-4, 2 BB, R) hit a two-run triple in the eighth inning, and classmates Jonathan India (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R) and Nelson Maldonado (1-for-1, RBI) both singled in the bottom of the ninth. India scored the winning run. Florida was not the only ranked team to receive a scare Wednesday. No. 6 Miami, which will host Florida in a big series this weekend, needed extra innings to dispatch NAIA St. Thomas (Fla.). The Hurricanes trailed by two runs in the eighth inning before coming back to win, 7-6, in 10 innings. Miami (4-0) stranded 22 runners, breaking a school record that had stood since 1953. No. 23 Georgia Tech (4-0) also needed extra innings before it pulled out a 6-5 victory in 16 innings at Georgia Southern. The Yellow Jackets tied the game at three with a ninth-inning run, but neither team could score again until the 16th inning when Brandon Gold hit a three-run home run to give Georgia Tech the lead. Georgia Southern got two runs back in the bottom half of the inning, but was unable to extend the game further. Freshman righthander Keyton Gibson (2 IP, 1 H, 0 R) earned his first career victory. The game was the longest in Georgia Tech history, surpassing the previous high of 15 innings. While several ranked teams were able to stave off upsets, No. 8 Louisiana State was not so fortunate. LSU took an 8-0 lead in the second inning at Lamar, but the Cardinals overcame the deficit and held on for a 12-11 victory. Video The game held added intrigue, as former LSU assistant coach Will Davis has been tapped to replace longtime Lamar coach Jim Gilligan when he retires at the end of the season. Following the game, Davis told Chandler Rome of the Baton Rouge Advocate that it was one of the greatest games he’d ever been a part of, regardless of the opponent. “My heart bleeds for them,” Davis said. “I love the guys in that purple and gold dugout and I love that coaching staff and they’re going to be fine.” LSU fell to 3-1 with the loss, while Lamar improved to 5-0. It is the Cardinals best start to a season since 2010, which was also the last time Lamar went to the NCAA Tournament.