Wake Forest Takes the Series Over Florida State With an 8-1 Victory

Florida State (14-2, 1-2 ACC) doubled its loss total on Saturday, dropping not just the first game of the doubleheader 4-3 on a Wake Forest (7-9, 2-1 ACC) walk-off home run, but also losing the second game 8-1 to lose its first series of the season.

The Good: Wake Forest did everything right in game two of the doubleheader. Led by an outstanding outing from starter Morgan McSweeney and an offense that exploded for eight runs on 12 hits, the Demon Deacons outplayed Florida State on every level to clinch the series for a second straight season.

The Bad: The Florida State pitching staff left a lot to be desired in the late game. Five different arms were called upon to pitch for Mike Martin, and every pitcher walked at least one batter. Austin Pollock gave up seven hits and six earned runs in just 1 1/3 innings pitched. He faced just 12 batters. Tyler Ahearn and Conner Grady were both tagged for one earned run themselves.

The Ugly: Florida State just had a bad day all around, racking up 10 hits in 18 innings. The Noles had just one hit heading into the seventh inning of game two. The pitching was bad, but after the second inning, the damage was limited. The offense just could not manage to find any solid momentum. FSU loaded the bases with just one out in the seventh, but back-to-back strikeouts ended the inning and left the bases loaded.

Studs of the Game: Morgan McSweeney held the Seminoles to just three hits in 6 1/3 innings pitched. He struck out seven of the 22 batters that opposed him and the lone run he allowed came in the seventh inning.

Duds of the Game: Conference play was not kind to freshman Austin Pollock on Saturday night. Pollock was pulled after just 12 batters. He allowed six runs to cross the plate on seven hits and one walk. He did not record a strikeout.

Extra Innings: The good news for the Seminoles following a tough first weekend of conference play? They get to travel to Gainesville on Tuesday to take on the defending national champion Florida Gators. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. EST.