Rob Vaughn Reflects on Costly Fifth Inning as Alabama Falls to Florida in SEC Tournament

HOOVER, Ala.- Following the Crimson Tide’s 13-3 loss to Florida on Thursday in the third round of the SEC Tournament, which saw Alabama get run ruled, bringing the game to a close in the eighth inning, the Crimson Tide’s head coach Rob Vaughn spoke to the media about his teams performance where he brought up the Tide’s lackluster fifth inning which saw the Gators score five runs giving them a 7-0 lead going into the bottom of the fifth inning. 

Get our free mobile app

Vaughn identified the fifth inning as the turning point in the game. He noted that while Crimson Tide starting pitcher Tyler Fay surrendered two solo home runs in the top of the fourth, those hits did not shift the game’s momentum. Instead, the five runs, four of which scored due to an error and a pair of misread flyballs, in the fifth inning sealed Alabama’s fate.

“Those homers weren't really the game-changer. It was really what happened there in the fifth. You got a chance to get off the field, you get almost a ridiculous play with Bron and Holt, like wild. But leadoff single, fly-out, ground-out, you're sitting there with two guys on base or nobody on base, two outs. And then we just couldn't get quite off the field.” Vaughn added, “They get a big two-out hit, which, like, even then, you're like, okay. Jones unfortunate kind of flips it in there. But even there, you're sitting there 4-0. Like, the game is still firmly where you want it at 4-0. You're not really flinching too much there. Then it was the next couple of plays, just not able to get off. We kind of, I don't know if Brady had a tough time seeing it, and I'm not sure if he just had a bad read on it. I'm not 100 percent sure. But obviously, the triple followed up by the error that scored some home runs just blew it open on their side a little bit. And that's where the game changed. The homers I didn't think affected anything. That's part of the game. We responded to that plenty of times. We just couldn't quite get off the field there in the fifth.”

In the top of the fifth inning, the Crimson Tide were on the verge of escaping trouble with two outs and just one more needed to retire the side as the Gators had one runner on first. But senior right fielder/catcher Brady Neal misplayed a pair of fly balls, allowing three runs to score. Shortly after, an error by star shortstop Justin Lebron allowed another run to score, sending the Gators into the bottom of the fifth with a commanding seven-run lead.

Alabama pitcher Tyler Fay, who recorded the first two outs of the fifth, was unable to finish the inning. This snapped his streak of 13 consecutive games pitching at least five innings; the last time he failed to do so was in the season opener against Washington State, when he threw just 3.2 innings in an 8-4 loss.

The Crimson Tide turned to six different bullpen pitchers, allowing six more runs over the remainder of the game. Offensively, Alabama struggled to generate momentum, scoring a run in the bottom of the fifth on Neal’s sacrifice fly that brought home Peyton Steele. They added two more runs in the seventh when Neal hit a two-run home run, collecting his third RBI of the game.

Unfortunately for Alabama, the damage from the top of the fifth was too much to overcome. Florida advanced via the run rule, eliminating the Crimson Tide from the SEC tournament. The Gators move on to the semifinals, where they will play regular-season SEC champion Georgia on Saturday at 1 p.m. EDT.

Alabama, meanwhile, will wait for the NCAA Baseball Tournament selection show on Monday to see if they’ve done enough to secure a national seed. The Tide is certain to host a Regional in Tuscaloosa and appear well-positioned to earn the right to host a Super Regional at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

Follow @Micahnichols0 on X (formerly Twitter) and tune in to Tide 100.9 for all your Alabama baseball, football, and basketball coverage.