The fifth-seeded Florida Gators baseball team advances to the quarterfinals of the 2026 SEC Tournament to face the fourth-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide on Thursday.
The game is scheduled for approximately 4:30 p. m.
ET at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Alabama.
The matchup will broadcast live on the SEC Network, taking the field roughly 30 minutes after the opening contest between top-seeded Georgia and eighth-seeded Mississippi State concludes.
Pitching Matchup
Florida scheduled right-handed pitcher Liam Peterson, who holds a 2-5 record and a 4.00 ERA, to start the game.
Alabama countered with right-handed pitcher Tyler Fay, carrying a 9-3 record and a 4.43 ERA.
Florida enters the game after securing an 8-3 victory over the 12th-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores during the tournament's second round on Wednesday.
The Gators collected 14 hits against Vanderbilt, powered by home runs from Blake Cyr, Brendan Lawson, and Hayden Yost, who each finished a triple short of the cycle.
The offensive surge backed freshly named SEC Pitcher of the Year Aidan King, who allowed three runs on five hits and three walks over 4 2/3 innings while striking out five batters in his first career start in Hoover.
During the second inning, catcher Karson Bowen initiated the first successful Automated Ball-Strike challenge in program history, overturning a ball call into a strike against Rustan Rigdon.
University records show Florida went 3-for-3 on ABS challenges during the game, making the program the eighth in the NCAA to win such a challenge.
The victory marks the ninth win in the last 10 games for Florida, outscoring opponents 97-44 over that stretch and improving their regular-season record to 38-18 overall and 18-12 in the SEC.
The Gators hold a 24-12 record against unranked opponents alongside a 14-6 mark against ranked teams, giving them the second-most Quad 1 victories in the nation with 15.
The Crimson Tide enter the quarterfinal matchup with a 37-18 overall record and an identical 18-12 mark in conference play.
Historically, Florida possesses a 79-70 record across 44 SEC Tournament appearances, including a 32-25 record under head coach Kevin O'Sullivan and a 10-6 mark over the last five seasons in Hoover.
National rankings placed the Gators at No. 9 in the Baseball America Top 25, No. 14 in Perfect Game, No. 17 in the NCBWA and USA Today Coaches Poll, and No. 18 at D1Baseball this week.
