The Daily Nole

FSU Falls at Duke, Losing Streak Hits Four

Phil Kelly/FSU athletics

For the second day in a row and the fourth time in five days, Florida State fell into an early hole it was never really able to dig out of. Duke handed the Seminoles their fourth straight loss on Saturday and clinched the series with a 3-1 victory.

Duke starting pitcher Trent Swart allowed just one run on six hits in seven innings of work while striking out nine Seminoles. Cole Sands was solid for FSU, allowing just three runs on four hits in six innings, but took the loss. Duke will go for the series sweep on Sunday.

The Good: Pitching for both teams was outstanding. In addition to great starts by Swart and Sands, neither bullpen gave up a run for the second straight day. Al Pesto and Mitch Stallings combined to throw three shutout innings for Duke. Alec Byrd and Chase Haney each threw a scoreless frame for the Seminoles.

The Bad: Neither team did a great job maximizing scoring opportunities on Saturday. FSU was just 1-for-14 with runners on base while Duke was only 2-for-13. The teams were a combined 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position. Both teams left eight on base.

The Ugly: Baserunning continues to be a huge sore spot for the Seminoles. FSU had one runner picked off on Saturday and first baseman Dylan Busby might have killed the comeback hopes for Florida State by running into an easy out, trying to stretch a lead-off single in the ninth inning into a double.

Studs of the Game: The pitchers stole the show on Saturday, but at the plate, Duke leadoff man Jimmy Herron was 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Quincy Nieporte and Matt Henderson each had two hits for the Seminoles in the loss.

Duds of the Game: FSU shortstop Taylor Walls’ hot streak came to an end as Walls went 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. In his second start since coming back from injury, left fielder Jackson Lueck was 0-for-4 for FSU with three strikeouts. Peter Zyla and Chris Proctor were each hitless in four at-bats for the Blue Devils.

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