Florida star Skylar Wallace praises Gators resilience after winning SEC Softball Tournament title

Florida continued the postseason offensive barrage on Saturday, besting Missouri to secure an SEC tournament title on the softball diamond in a 6-1 win. And right at the center of it was star shortstop Skylar Wallace, who hit yet another postseason home run.

With her performance on Saturday, Wallace finished her SEC tournament not only with a conference title, but with a 7-for-9 record in the batters box, including a trio of home runs. She joked with ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the win about breaking out of a slump that led into the recent run of play for the Gators.

“I’ve been saying it all week long: Just really trusting my preparation,” Wallace said. “I’ve been asked, ‘Do you think you’re in a slump or something?’ I don’t really think I’ve been in a slump, I just put too much pressure on myself. My mechanics have been good, my swing’s been good. It’s just really trusting that. As a veteran out here, just want be a good leader on the team and set the tone early from the jump and I just trusted that and trusted that and trusted the preparation I put in earlier.”

The three wins at the SEC tournament also capped off a run of 10 wins in a row to end the season for the Gators, putting them back in firm position to host a regional and, perhaps, a super regional, in the NCAA softball tournament.

Wallace raved about the resilience of the Gators.

“I think we’ve had some up and downs, but that’s because of our own mindsets and our own little struggles,” Wallace said. “So I think it’s been good for us to get the ball rolling, especially this time of year. No better time to be hot than postseason is what they say. So it’s really important to keep this rolling and keep making adjustments we need to do going into regionals with a win.”

Plus, a pair of freshmen have starred for the Gators in the last two days, as pitcher Keagan Rothrock and infielder Mia Williams have both come through in big ways.

Williams hit a pair of three-run home runs, one in the semifinals and one on Saturday and Rothrock got the start for Florida in the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship game. She went the distance on Saturday for the win.

“Yeah it takes all players, one through 18 that we have on this team,” Wallace said. “It’s not going to be one person that’s going to shine. I’m really proud of our freshmen for stepping up and just trusting in their roles and doing the little things correctly. I think that plays into the big parts. Mia came in clutch, that’s awesome for her. We’ve been waiting for that and just really proud of her. And Keagan’s shown a lot, a lot of grit. It’s not easy throwing two games yesterday and then coming back out and having some really good stuff today.”