Seminole Saturday Summary: Noles Handle Syracuse, FSU Soccer Falls at North Carolina

Florida State running back Cam Akers rushed for 144 yards and tied a school-record with four rushing touchdowns as Florida State defeated Syracuse on homecoming Saturday, 35-17.

FSU racked up 487 yards of offense to get back to .500. Syracuse’s only two touchdowns came in the fourth quarter with the game already well in doubt.

Khalan Laborn added 68 yards rushing and a touchdown in the victory. FSU’s Tamorrion Terry led all receivers with 84 yards receiving on two catches.

With the win, FSU improves to 4-4 and will get ready for a pivotal ACC game with Miami. Syracuse has still never won in Tallahassee.

FSU soccer fell to North Carolina on Thursday night in a top-5 contest. (FSU athletics)

In an ACC and national championship rematch from last season, North Carolina got revenge as it defeated Florida State soccer in Chapel Hill on Thursday night, 2-0.

The match was scoreless until Ru Mucherera found the back of the net in the 76th minute. Brianna Pinto doubled the lead less than seven minutes later. Lotte Wubben-Moy added an assist for the No. 3 Tar Heels.

Fifth-ranked FSU finished with 14 shots and six on goal to 11 shots and five on goal for North Carolina. All six shots on goal for FSU were in the second half and all were saved by North Carolina’s Claudia Dickey. Caroline Jeffers had three saves for FSU.

The loss likely kills FSU’s chances of being the ACC regular season champion and the top seed in the conference tournament. North Carolina can clinch that title with one win in its final two games. FSU is currently tied with Virginia for second in the ACC with 18 points.

Football

Record: 4-4 (3-3 ACC)
Ranking: None
Past Week: (1-0), defeated Syracuse, 35-17
Upcoming: vs. Miami (Saturday)
Recognitions: None
Weekly Commitments: None
2020 Recruiting Class Ranking: No. 13 nationally, second in ACC (20 total commitments)*
Big Picture: FSU got back on track in a big way and will try to take a step toward bowl-eligibility next week against Miami.

Weekly Review

Syracuse 17, FSU 35
Saturday, Oct. 26
Cam Akers rushed for 144 yards for Florida State and tied a school-record with four rushing touchdowns. Khalan Laborn added 68 yards rushing and a score in the victory. The Seminoles led 35-3 after three quarters before a couple of late touchdowns for Syracuse. The Seminoles finished with 487 yards of total offense.

Men’s Basketball

Record: 0-0
Ranking: None
Upcoming: at Pittsburgh (Nov. 6)
Recognitions: None
Weekly Commitments: None
2020 Recruiting Class Ranking: No. 14 nationally, fourth in ACC (3 total commitments)*
Big Picture: FSU played well in its first exhibition and will play one more before beginning the regular season.

Soccer

Record: 12-4 (6-2 ACC)
Ranking: No. 5 United Soccer Coaches
Past Week: (0-1), lost at North Carolina, 2-0
Upcoming: at Wake Forest (Sunday); Duke (Thursday)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: Florida State missed an opportunity to take the ACC lead and regular season title on Thursday night against North Carolina. The Seminoles will have a chance to finish strong.

Weekly Review

(5) FSU 0, (3) North Carolina 2
Thursday, Oct. 24
Ru Mucherera’s goal in the 76th minute broke a scoreless tie and put North Carolina ahead for good. The Tar Heels would add a breakaway goal about six minutes later from Brianna Pinto. Caroline Jeffers had three saves for FSU in the loss. Claudia Dickey had six for North Carolina.

Volleyball

Record: 12-6 (6-3 ACC)
Ranking: None
Past Week: (1-1), defeated Syracuse, 3-0; lost at Georgia Tech, 3-0
Upcoming: at Clemson (Sunday); Miami (Wednesday); at Virginia Tech (Friday)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: After a nice win over Syracuse, the Seminoles were embarrassed at Georgia Tech. FSU now sits in a fifth-place tie in the ACC.

Weekly Review

Syracuse 0, FSU 3
Sunday, Oct. 20
Florida State recorded its second consecutive straight-set victory against Syracuse. Payton Caffrey led FSU with 15 kills while Taryn Knuth added 10 blocks in the victory. Syracuse’s Polina Shemanova recorded a match-high 17 kills. The Seminoles committed just 10 errors in the victory.

FSU 0, Georgia Tech 3
Friday, Oct. 25
Florida State couldn’t hold a 23-21 lead in the first set and from there, it was downhill for the Seminoles as they couldn’t score more than 13 points in either of the final two sets. Georgia Tech’s Mariana Brambilla finished with a match-high 14 kills and four aces. Payton Caffrey paced FSU with nine kills while Taylor Roberts recorded a team-high 10 digs.

Cross Country

Ranking: Men No. 21 USTFCCCA, No. 3 USTFCCCA South Region; Women No. 10 USTFCCCA, No. 1 USTFCCCA South Region
Past Week: Idle
Upcoming: ACC Championships (Friday)
Recognitions: Kasey Knevelbaard (ACC Men’s Performer of the Week); Elizabeth Funderburk (ACC Women’s Performer of the Week)
Big Picture: After strong performances in the Under Armour Pre-National Invitational, FSU will head into the ACC Championships with a lot of momentum.

Women’s Golf

Ranking: No. 13 WGCA
Past Week: Ninth at Jim West Challenge, began Landfall Tradition
Upcoming: Landfall Tradition (Sunday)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: FSU is currently in third place through two rounds at the Landfall Tradition. At +3, the Seminoles are 16 strokes off the lead.

Weekly Review

9th at Jim West Challenge
Monday, Oct. 21 and Tuesday, Oct. 22
Florida State shot -5 as a team, but that was only good enough for ninth place at the Jim West Challenge in San Marcos, Texas. Puk Lyng Thomsen finished tied for 17th for the Seminoles at -4 while Amelia Williamson’s -3 was good for 22nd. Ole Miss took the team title. Sasikarn Somboonsup of host Texas State was the individual winner at -10.

Men’s Golf

Ranking: None
Past Week: Idle
Upcoming: White Sands Intercollegiate (Friday through Nov. 3)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: After a lengthy rest, FSU will get back on the links this week out in Texas.

Swimming and Diving

Ranking: Men No. 15 CSCAA; Women No. 20 CSCAA
Past Week: The FSU men defeated Georgia Tech, 160-140; the FSU women beat the Yellow Jackets, 177-123
Upcoming: at Florida (Nov. 8)
Recognitions: Joshua Davidson (ACC Men’s Diver of the Week); Molly Carlson (ACC Women’s Diver of the Week)
Big Picture: Florida State’s men’s and women’s teams continued to impress as each recorded their first road wins of the season. FSU will have next weekend off before traveling to face rival Florida.

Weekly Review

Men: (15) FSU 160, Georgia Tech 140; Women: (20) FSU 177, Georgia Tech 123
Saturday, Oct. 26
For the second straight week, Florida State scored victories on both the men’s and women’s side — this time at Georgia Tech. Led by Joshua Davidson, the Seminole men took the top three spots in the 1-meter diving. The FSU women swept the 100-yard freestyle and the 100-meter butterfly with Aryanna Fernandes and Emma Terebo taking first place, respectively, in those events. Kertu Ly Alnek led FSU as it also swept the 50-yard freestyle.

Other News

FSU hoops defeated Barry 95-66 in its first of two exhibition games.

FSU women’s hoops forward Kiah Gillespie was named to the Katrina McClain Award watch list.

Former FSU wide receiver Ron Sellers was named to the ACC’s 2019 Football Legends class.

FSU wide receiver Ontaria Wilson is likely out for the season with a shoulder injury.

FSU’s contest with Miami on Saturday will begin at 3:30 p.m. EST on ABC.

*247Sports Composite 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.