40. That’s how many wins Florida State has this baseball season and that’s how many consecutive years it has accomplished that feat.
The Seminoles reached that number and prolonged its season on Saturday with a 6-1 victory over UCF in the first elimination game of the NCAA Tournament’s Tallahassee Regional. To move on to the Super Regionals, FSU needs to win the next three, beginning on Sunday against either Auburn or Tennessee Tech. UCF finishes its season with a record of 40-22.
The Good: With the potential of playing two games on Sunday, FSU managed to avoid expending any of its bullpen on Saturday as Tyler Holton went the distance. Holton has been the constant in the Florida State rotation this season and that did not change on Saturday as the sophomore lefty went nine innings, allowing just an unearned run on six hits while striking out 13 and not walking a batter.
The Bad: While FSU was able to shake off a dismal offensive performance from Friday night with six runs on 11 hits, the Seminoles did strike out 13 times.
The Ugly: UCF’s only run came off a Matthew Mika 2-out RBI single in the seventh inning. That was made possible by two FSU throwing errors in the frame. UCF also allowed an unearned run on an error by third baseman Kam Gellinger in the ninth.
Studs of the Game: Tyler Holton obviously gets the majority of the recognition for his stellar pitching performance. At the plate for the Seminoles, Jackson Lueck got the scoring started with a 3-run home run. Taylor Walls was 2-for-5 with a solo home run and a pair of runs scored. Quincy Nieporte and Matt Henderson combined to reach base seven times on four hits. For UCF, Brennan Bozeman had two of the Knights’ six hits.
Duds of the Game: FSU’s center fielder J.C. Flowers continues to struggle at the plate. He was the only starter for the Seminoles without a hit on Saturday, going 0-for-3. For UCF, Luke Hamblin and Eli Putnam were each 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Logan Heiser was also 0-for-4.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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