JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Dolphins softball team welcomes the Florida Gators to Debbie & Fred Pruitt Softball Complex for the first midweek match up of the season on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m.
The meeting marks the eighth consecutive season the two programs have faced off in the 904, including the canceled 2020 campaign.
Last Time Out
Last weekend, the Dolphins hosted the River City Lead-off alongside UNF and kicked off the season with an impressive 3-1 record, their best start since 2023.
Jacksonville split Friday's doubleheader, beating Colgate 6-2 before dropping a tough contest to North Dakota State, 5-2. Saturday was all Dolphins however, as they rolled past UMass with back-to-back run-rule wins, 13-1 and 8-0.
Friday's opener against Colgate started off hot with a five-run third inning that put the Dolphins in control for good. Vic Brunette sparked the offense with multiple hits, reaching base three times and crossing the plate for the team's final run.
In game two, a three-run fifth inning by the Bison proved decisive, putting the game out of reach for the Dolphins.
Saturday was a showcase of offensive firepower as the Dolphins outscored UMass 21-1 across both games. UMass opened the scoring in game one with a RBI single to right, but the Minutewomen managed just one more hit the rest of the way.
Jacksonville's bats came alive in the second inning with eight runs, capped by a three-run homer from Tatum McCool. The Dolphins batted around, collecting six hits from six different players. They kept the pressure on in the next inning, stringing together another six hits, this time all singles, to plate five more runs. The scoring surge ended the game early on the run rule.
In game two, the Dolphins set the tone early with two runs in the first and limited UMass to just one runner reaching third base all afternoon.
Emma Mansfield led the way in game two with three hits and two runs scored. Jaida Thomas chipped in, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs. The top of the Dolphins' order was red-hot, accounting for eight of the team's 12 hits and seven of the eight runs.
Pinch-hitter Alison Carter sealed the win, sending a bases-loaded single past the right fielder for a walk-off run-rule victory that scored Thomas.
The Standouts
Jordan White excelled in the circle, beginning with a gem against Colgate. The junior tossed a complete game, allowing just four hits and two runs while striking out a career-high 10 batters. She picked up the opening win and didn't allow a baserunner until the fifth inning.
White earned another win in the opener against UMass, throwing another complete game with just three hits and one run allowed. She added three more strikeouts to reach 13 for the weekend, one of the top marks nationally from the opening weekend.
Kate Linkletter set the tone early, going 3-for-4 with three singles to center against Colgate. She also gave Jacksonville an early lead in game two against UMass with a towering two-run homer to left. Linkletter wrapped up the weekend, hitting .385 (5-for-13) with four runs scored.
Madisyn Weathers was a spark all weekend long. In Friday's second game, she went a perfect 3-for-3 from the dish with an RBI. She leads the Dolphins with a .692 on-base percentage, a 1.525 OPS, and 10 total bases after the opening weekend.
About The Gators
A perennial powerhouse in college softball, the Florida Gators made their 13th trip to Oklahoma City for the Women's College World Series last year.
This season, the Gators entered with plenty of hype, landing in the top-10 of four major preseason polls. They were ranked as high as No. 4 by D1 Softball and No. 6 in the NFCA coaches poll.
Led by standouts Taylor Shumaker, Keagan Rothrock and Jocelyn Erickson, Florida returned more than 10 players from last year's CWS squad.
Florida opened the season in dominant fashion, sweeping all five of their opening weekend games in the USF-Rawlings Invitational. The Gators outscored opponents 32-4 and notched three shutout performances.
In the SEC preseason coaches' poll, Florida was picked fourth, trailing Texas, Oklahoma and Tennessee.
More About Us
Jacksonville made key staff changes this offseason, promoting Jake Sidwell to associate head coach and bringing in Holli Mitchell as pitching coach.
Sidwell spent the last two seasons at Jacksonville as an assistant coach, focusing on hitting and serving as a primary recruiter. Since his arrival, the Dolphins' batting average has climbed from .240 to .245 in his first year, and up to .256 last season. Slugging percentage has followed suit, jumping from .326 to .360 over the same span.
Mitchell led Snead State Community College's pitching staff from 2014 to 2022 and previously coached at Jacksonville State, helping the Gamecocks reach the conference championship last year. Head coach Erica Ayers praised the hire, saying, "I feel very confident that she is the right person to lead our pitching staff and a great fit for JU. Holli has had success leading pitching staffs at both the JUCO and Division I level."
The Dolphins were picked ninth in the preseason ASUN coaches poll, earning 56 total votes.
Tuesday's match up presents an early-season measuring stick for the Dolphins as they look to build momentum against one of the nation's top programs.
