Seminole Saturday Summary: Noles Escape Warhawks, FSU Soccer Tops Florida

It wasn’t pretty and it didn’t leave fans with much encouragement, but Florida State football is in the win column for the first time in 2019.

The Seminoles let a 21-0 lead slip away before rallying to take the lead and ultimately holding off Louisiana-Monroe in overtime, 45-44. Cam Akers scored from three yards out on FSU’s overtime possession before the Warhawks answered with a 5-yard touchdown run from Caleb Evans. Jacob Meeks’ extra point attempt sailed right and the Seminoles escaped.

Akers finished with 193 yards rushing, 55 yards receiving and three total touchdowns in the victory. FSU quarterback James Blackman passed for 282 yards and three touchdowns, but was intercepted twice, including one that was returned 57 yards for a touchdown by Corey Straughter.

Evans accounted for four total touchdowns for the Warhawks in the loss. Josh Johnson rushed for 126 yards and a touchdown. 21 of Louisiana-Monroe’s 44 points came off FSU turnovers.

Kristen McFarland scored FSU’s first goal in Friday’s 2-1 win over Florida. (FSU athletics)

In another contest decided by one, Florida State soccer topped Florida 2-1 in Tallahassee on Friday night in the first match-up between the schools in any sport this academic year.

The Gators led 1-0 on a second-half goal by Tess Sapone, but the Seminoles responded with goals from Kristen McFarland and Yujie Zhao within a 15-minute span. Jaelin Howell added an assist for FSU in the victory.

FSU finished with 13 shots to just five for rival Florida. The Seminoles avoided losing three straight matches for the first time since 2003.

Football

Record: 1-1
Ranking: None
Past Week: (1-0), defeated Louisiana Monroe in overtime, 45-44.
Upcoming: at Virginia (Saturday)
Recognitions: None
Weekly Commitments: Chad Moscoe, 4-star 2022 QB# (Unranked)*
2020 Recruiting Class Ranking: No. 9 nationally, second in ACC (21 total commitments)*
Big Picture: Despite hanging on for a Week 2 victory, FSU may actually feel worse about its prospects than in the opening loss to Boise State. The Seminoles, at 1-1, look to be a team in danger of another losing season.

Weekly Review

Louisiana-Monroe 44, FSU 45
Saturday, Sept. 7 (Overtime)
FSU let an early 21-0 lead slip away and actually trailed 35-31 in the fourth quarter. The Seminoles would rally to take the lead and the contest eventually went into overtime, where running back Cam Akers scored on the first possession. Louisiana-Monroe answered with Caleb Evans’ fourth total touchdown of the night, but kicker Jacob Meeks missed the tying extra point. Akers finished with 248 total yards and three scores. The Warhawks converted three FSU turnovers into 21 points.

Men’s Basketball

Weekly Commitments: None
2020 Recruiting Class Ranking: No. 46 nationally, ninth in ACC (1 total commitment)*

Soccer

Record: 3-2
Ranking: No. 6 United Soccer Coaches
Past Week: (1-1), lost to USC 3-2 in overtime; defeated Florida, 2-1
Upcoming: vs. Samford (Sunday); vs. Colorado (Thursday)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: After two hard-fought losses to top-5 teams, Florida State scored its first comeback win on Friday night over rival Florida.

Weekly Review

(1) FSU 2, (5) USC 3 (Overtime)
Sunday, Sept. 1
Florida State rallied from two goals down to force overtime, but USC found a way to win the top-5 match-up with a goal from Penelope Hocking in the 98th minute. USC’s Tara McKeown scored the Women of Troy’s first two goals and assisted on the game-winner. Hocking also had an assist. Jenna Nighswonger scored her first career goal for the Seminoles in the loss. Deyna Castellanos assisted on that goal before tying the match with an unassisted goal of her own in the 60th minute.

Florida 1, (6) FSU 2
Friday, Sept. 6
After falling behind early in the second half, FSU rallied with two goals in less than 15 minutes to win its third straight match over rival Florida. After Kristen McFarland tied the contest with an unassisted goal in the 57th minute, Yujie Zhao put FSU ahead for good with her first goal of the season in the 71st minute. Jaelin Howell recorded the assist. Tess Sapone scored the lone Florida goal.

Volleyball

Record: 2-2
Ranking: No. 22 AVCA Coaches Poll
Past Week: (1-1), defeated Florida Atlantic, 3-2; lost to Colorado State, 3-0
Upcoming: vs. TCU (Sunday, in Fort Collins); vs. Stony Brook (Friday); vs. St. John’s (Saturday); vs. Florida A&M (Saturday)
Recognitions: N/A
Big Picture: Florida State split its first two of three matches out in Fort Worth. The Seminoles will try to clinch a winning trip on Sunday against host TCU before heading home for the first time this season.

Weekly Review

Florida Atlantic 2, (22) FSU 3
Friday, Sept. 6 (Fort Worth)
Florida State needed a decisive fifth set against Florida Atlantic in Fort Worth, but opened its 3-day stay with a victory. Payton Caffrey led the Seminoles with 22 kills to go with 14 digs. Morgan Chacon finished with 14 kills and a match-high 17 digs. Massiel Matos led the Owls with 16 kills.

(22) FSU 0, Colorado State 3
Saturday, Sept. 7
FSU proved to be no match for Colorado State on Saturday. Colorado State’s Breanna Runnels finished with a match-high 14 kills while Alexa Roumeliotis added 23 digs. Taryn Knuth’s six kills paced the Seminoles. FSU fell 25-23, 25-18, 25-22.

Cross Country

Ranking: Men No. 2 USTFCCCA South Region; Women No. 20 USTFCCCA, No. 2 USTFCCCA South Region
Past Week: Idle
Upcoming: Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational (Sept. 20)
Recognitions: Kasey Knevelbaard (ACC Men’s Performer of the Week); Lauren Ryan (ACC Women’s Performer of the Week)
Big Picture: FSU started the season strong with wins on both the men’s and women’s side at the Covered Bridge Open.

Women’s Golf

Ranking: No. 5 WGCA, No. 6 Golfweek
Upcoming: Cougar Classic (Sunday through Tuesday)
Recognitions: Frida Kinhult (ANNIKA Award watch list)
Big Picture: FSU will play its first tournament of the new athletic year, beginning on Sunday. After reaching the NCAA Championships and finishing 12th, the Seminoles enter the new season with a very strong team.

Other News

FSU freshman defensive back Travis Jay is out with a “non-injury” issue.

FSU tackle Jauan Williams left Saturday’s football game with Louisiana-Monroe and did not return.

*247Sports Composite rankings
#247Sports rankings

Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson. Like The Daily Nole on Facebook. To pitch an idea, author a post or to learn more about The Daily Nole, email Mike Ferguson at Mike@TheDailyNole.com.