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Florida softball stunned by Georgia in Super Region opener

 
Published May 27, 2016

GAINESVILLE — If you tuned into ESPN sometime Thursday, you might've seen a commercial for the Women's College World Series that focused on Florida fighting for its third straight national title.

Not if Georgia gets its way.

The Bulldogs blanked the Gators 3-0 in Game 1 of the three-game Super Region softball series before a capacity crowd of 2,084.

No. 16 seed Georgia (44-18) is a heavy underdog against No. 1 Florida, and the challenge was more daunting with junior Delanie Gourley pitching for the Gators (56-6). Her 0.70 ERA coming in was the second-best in the country.

But Chelsea Wilkinson won the pitching duel; the Bulldogs senior became just the second pitcher this season to shut out the defending back-to-back national champion Gators.

"That's the secret sauce," UF coach Tim Walton said. "We haven't squared the ball up against Chelsea Wilkinson."

Maeve McGuire had a pair of run-scoring singles for UGA.

Florida had just three hits off the righty, who stranded eight. The Gators, who had been 14-1 in Super Region games in Gainesville, have never lost a series at this stage at home.

"(Today is) gonna be a great opportunity to see what this team is made of," Florida catcher Aubree Munro said.

Game 2 is 5 p.m. today; if UF wins, the deciding game is at 8.