A walk-off home run is one thing. A walk-off home run to win a championship is another.
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Not many people know what the latter feels like, but Florida softball catcher Julia Cottrill does.
In the bottom of the seventh inning in the final game of the weekend series against Texas A&M, Cottrill stepped up to the plate with a runner on second. The Gators were down 5-4.
She needed to make a clutch play.
Julia Cottrill's Walk-Off Home Run Against Texas A&M
THE GATORS WALK IT OFF TO CLINCH THE NO. 1 SEED ! ! ! ! @GatorsSB 🐊 pic.twitter.com/VJpnyQrjOy
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) May 9, 2021
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Kayla Poynter took the circle to close out the game for the Aggies. The heart of the Gators lineup stood in the way of a win.
In stepped Cottrill, the cleanup hitter with a .295 average on the season.
The UF catcher worked Poynter to a 2-2 count. On the next throw, she saw an inside pitch she liked and smoked it over the left field fence.
The two-run home run secured the win, the series sweep and the SEC regular season title for Florida. The victory brought the fourth-ranked Gators to a 19-5 SEC record and 40-8 overall.
The top-seeded Florida Gators will be the team to beat when the conference travels to Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama for the SEC Tournament. They will face the winner of Ole Miss and Mississippi State on Thursday.
Head coach Tim Walton and his softball team have aspirations to reach the 2021 NCAA Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Gainesville's Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium is expected to host at least a regional, and most likely a super regional, if things go as planned in Tuscaloosa.
For now, the Gators are focused on winning the conference tournament. It won't be easy. Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, LSU, Kentucky and Tennessee pose tough challenges.
Luckily, UF knows what it takes to come through in big moments.
