Seminole Sunday Summary: FSU Softball Reaches WCWS Semifinals, FSU Baseball Faces Elimination

Florida State softball has won two straight elimination games and will have to win two more on Sunday to reach the championship series of the Women’s College World Series.

No. 10 national seed FSU advanced to the semifinals early Sunday morning with a 4-2 win over No. 5 national seed Oklahoma State. The Seminoles broke through with three runs in the third inning.

Anna Shelnutt got the scoring started with a mammoth solo home run before Kaley Mudge doubled home a run. She would come around to score on a Sydney Sherrill groundout.

The Cowgirls drew to within one with runs in the third and fifth innings, but FSU added a run in the seventh. Mudge scored her second run of the night after stealing third and coming home on a throwing error.

The trip to Oklahoma City did not start off on the right foot for FSU softball. The Seminoles opened on Thursday night with a 4-0 loss to No. 2 national seed UCLA.

The contest was scoreless for four innings, but an infield single in the fifth allowed UCLA’s Kinsley Washington to score the game’s first run. After adding a run in the sixth, Maya Brady put the exclamation point on the contest with a 2-run home run for the Bruins.

On Saturday afternoon, the Seminoles fell behind early again, but stayed alive with a thrilling walk-off win over No. 11 national seed Arizona, 4-3.

FSU fell behind 2-0, but pulled ahead in the bottom of the sixth on a 3-run home run by Dani Morgan. The Wildcats drew even in the top of the seventh on Reyna Carranco’s RBI double, but Carranco made a costly error in the bottom of the inning to put runners at the corners.

With one out, Cassidy Davis played the role of hero for the Seminoles with a walk-off sacrifice fly.

FSU will now have to beat No. 3 national seed Alabama twice on Sunday to advance. The first of those contests begins at 3:30 p.m. ET and airs on ESPN.

Bryce Hubbart was solid in Saturday’s start vs. Ole Miss. (Florida State athletics)

Florida State baseball started off the NCAA Tournament on the right foot, but enters Sunday facing elimination.

The Seminoles moved to the winners’ bracket of the Oxford Regional with a 5-2 win over Southern Mississippi on Friday. FSU gave up two unearned runs in the first, but pulled ahead with a pair of long balls in the sixth.

After Logan Lacey’s 2-run home run tied the game, Elijah Cabell’s solo blast later in the inning put FSU ahead for good. The Seminoles added some insurance in the eighth on Matheu Nelson’s 2-run bomb.

On Saturday, it looked as though the contest would play out the same way, but a late error was the difference. FSU came up short to host and No. 12 national seed Ole Miss, 4-3.

For the second straight day, FSU committed a pair of errors in the first inning, which allowed the Rebels to take a 2-0 lead. The Seminoles again used a pair of long balls to pull in front.

After Isaiah Perry’s solo home run cut the lead in half in the bottom of the fifth, Lacey added a 2-run blast for the second straight day. That lead held until the seventh when shortstop Nander De Sedas’ throwing error with two outs allowed a pair of runs to score.

FSU didn’t have a baserunner over the final three innings. As a team, the Seminoles struck out 21 times.

FSU will face Southern Miss again on Sunday afternoon. The winner will have to beat Ole Miss in consecutive games to advance.

Football

Weekly Commitments: None
Weekly Decommitments: Nicco Marichol, 4-star QB* (No. 291 overall*)
2022 Recruiting Class Ranking*: No. 12 nationally, first in ACC (8 total commitments)*
Big Picture: It was a big recruiting week for FSU with “Midnight Madness”, even though a 4-star quarterback decommitted.

Men’s Basketball

Weekly Commitments: None
2022 Recruiting Class Ranking*: N/A (0 total commitments)*
Big Picture: It’s a quiet time of year for basketball programs.

Baseball

Record: 31-23
Ranking: No. 18 Baseball America; No. 25 NCBWA; No. 3 seed Oxford Regional
Past Week: (1-1), beat Southern Mississippi in Oxford Regional on Friday, 5-2; lost to Ole Miss in Oxford Regional on Saturday, 4-3
Upcoming: vs. Southern Mississippi (Sunday, NCAA Tournament)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: FSU dropped a heartbreaker on Saturday night. That means the Seminoles will have to win three games in two days to advance.

Track and Field

Ranking: Men No. 6 USTFCCCA, No. 1 South; Women No. 10 USTFCCCA, No. 2 South
Past Week: Idle
Upcoming: NCAA Outdoor Championships (Wednesday-Saturday)
Recognitions: Bryand Rincher (Wilma Rudolph Award)
Big Picture: 21 FSU track and field athletes have qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships

Men’s Golf

Ranking: No. 2 Golfweek Coaches Poll; No. 3 Golfweek/Sargarin; No. 2 Golfstat
Past Week: Lost to Pepperdine in NCAA Quarterfinals
Recognitions: John Pak (Ben Hogan Award); Brett Roberts (GCAA Freshman All-American)
Big Picture: FSU had an outstanding year and was among the last eight teams standing, but could not get past the quarterfinals.

Softball

Record: 46-11-1
Ranking: No. 7 NCFA Coaches; No. 10 Softball America; No. 8 D1Softball; No. 10 national seed
Past Week: (2-1), lost to UCLA in Women’s College World Series on Thursday, 4-0; beat Arizona in Women’s College World Series on Saturday, 4-3; beat Oklahoma State in College World Series early Sunday, 4-2
Upcoming: vs. Alabama (Sunday, Women’s College World Series)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: FSU needs two wins on Sunday to reach the national championship series.

*247Sports Composite rankings

Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson