(www.jaxsportsday.com) - Florida held off a late surge by Oral Roberts to stay in the winners' bracket of the College World Series with a 5-4 victory over the Golden Eagles.
The Gators took a 5-1 lead behind home runs from Ty Evans, Josh Rivera and Luke Heyman, and another outstanding outing from starter Hurston Waldrep.
However, like they have shown throughout the NCAA Tournament, the Golden Eagles refused to go away and cut the lead to a run in the bottom of the ninth inning and had the tying run on third base.
Needing one more out, Gators reliever Cade Fisher retired Jacob Godman on a fly ball to center fielder Michael Robertson on the game's final pitch, allowing the Gators to take a deep breath and know they have two days off before their next game.
Heyman's two-run blast in the fourth inning gave the Gators a four-run lead and chased Oral Roberts starter Harley Gollart. All the momentum was on Florida's side. But by the end of the game, Heyman's homer proved crucial and helped Florida snap the Golden Eagles' seven-game win streak (three in the NCAA Tournament) in games they trailed by three runs or more.
Through six innings of Sunday's game, 25 of the first 36 outs came via the strikeout. Three Oral Roberts pitchers accumulated 13 strikeouts in the first six innings, while Waldrep had 12.