For a second time in three years and a seventh time since joining the conference, Florida State is the baseball champions of the ACC. The Seminoles fell behind early on Sunday afternoon in Louisville, but stormed back, scoring seven unanswered runs in a 7-3 victory over North Carolina in the ACC Championship.
During the ACC Tournament, FSU went a perfect 4-0 to improve to 39-20 on the season and move into the conversation to host a regional. A 5-run eighth inning and a stellar effort by the bullpen was the difference on Sunday as the eighth-seeded Seminoles topped No. 2 seed North Carolina for the crown.
The Good: Florida State unlike in other contests was unable to storm ahead early, but used a great effort from its bullpen to keep things moving along until the offense caught up. Drew Mendoza homered twice after a quiet ACC Tournament to spark the offense.
The Bad: Unlike the first three games in Louisville, Florida State did not get a stellar start from its pitcher, although Andrew Karp was far from horrible. Karp allowed three runs, two earned, in three innings of work, but the bullpen picked him up.
The Ugly: Defense continues to be an issue for Florida State. Drew Mendoza made two errors in the fourth inning to allow an unearned run for the Tar Heels. Luckily for FSU, Mendoza atoned with blasts in the seventh and eighth innings.
Studs of the Game: Two errors aside, Mendoza drove in four runs with the pair of blasts. His solo shot in the seventh cut the North Carolina lead to 3-2 before a 3-run blast in the eighth gave FSU a 7-3 cushion. Out of the bullpen, Drew Parrish, Alec Byrd and Drew Carlton combined to throw six shutout innings. Cal Raleigh was 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored for the Seminoles. For North Carolina, Tyler Lynn was 2-for-3 with a solo home run.
Duds of the Game: North Carolina’s No. 3 and 4 hitters, Ashton McGee and Kyle Datres, were a combined 0-for-9 with five strikeouts at the dish. Cody Roberts was also 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. On the mound, Josh Hiatt gave up six runs in 2 1/3 innings of relief to take the loss for the Tar Heels. For FSU, J.C. Flowers finishes the ACC Tournament without a hit after an 0-for-3 day. Jackson Lueck was 0-for-5 on Sunday with three strikeouts, but was named the tournament MVP.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
You must be logged in to post a comment Login