Omaha, Neb. – Atlantic Coast Conference rivals squared off in an elimination game on Sunday when the Florida State University (FSU) Seminoles, the No. 8 program in the country, beat No. 12 University of Virginia 7-3 at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha.
This game was the first that was decided by more than one run in the NCAA College World Series.
“I can remotely relay to you. This team’s response of playing arguably the best game we’ve played this year pretty much sums up what’s in that dugout. And to watch them play their best game, that was just a thrill,” FSU head coach Link Jarrett said during the postgame press conference.
The only time these two teams faced off this season was in the ACC Tournament on May 24 at Truist Field in Charlotte, N.C., and FSU won 12-7.
In the bottom of the second inning, the Seminoles offense threatened for their first run of the game with first baseman Daniel Cantu driving a ball deep to center field and Virginia center fielder Harrison Didawick leaping over the wall from his glove side to rob a solo home run and keep the game tied with no score.
MY GOODNESS @DidawickMark 😱#MCWS #SCTop10 x 🎥 ESPN / @UVABaseball pic.twitter.com/jHKMZnQPUJ
— NCAA Baseball (@NCAABaseball) June 16, 2024
During the bottom of the third inning, FSU got on the board with right fielder James Tibbs III drawing a bases-loaded walk, scoring second baseman Drew Faurot to take the lead at 1-0.
The FSU offense extended their lead to two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning when left fielder Jaime Ferrer cracked a solo home run over the left field wall to make it 2-0.
“Being able to come out clutch for my team is awesome. We still get to dance, and we still get to play on Tuesday and compete for a national championship, which, at the end of the day, is everyone’s goal here. And all eight of these teams are championship-caliber teams. For us to come out here with a win means the entire world to us,” Ferrer said during the postgame press conference.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Seminoles tacked four runs on the board, starting with designated hitter Marco Dinges rocking an RBI single through the right side of the infield, scoring third baseman Cam Smith to extend the lead to 3-0.
The next batter, Ferrer, launched a three-run home run over the left field wall, his second home run and his 22nd of the season, scoring Tibbs and Dinges to begin the floodgates at 6-0.
“It was a hard loss on Friday, a game we felt like we should have won late in that game. But for us to come back and have another opportunity to come out here and compete and play in front of these fans is a true blessing. It’s something we don’t take for granted,” Ferrer said during the post-game press conference.
During the bottom of the sixth inning, the FSU offense scored their seventh run, with shortstop Alex Lodise rocking a solo home run over the center field wall to mark a 7-0 lead.
Virginia’s offense left nine runners on base during their elimination loss on Sunday.
Cavaliers second baseman Henry Godbout and right fielder Casey Saucke each had RBI singles in the top of the seventh inning on Sunday.
Virginia left fielder Anthony Stephan also had an RBI double in the top of the eighth inning during their elimination loss.
FSU relief pitcher Brennen Oxford got Saucke to ground out to a 6-4-3 double play to end the game and knock off Virginia 7-2 on Sunday afternoon.
FSU starting pitcher Carson Dorsey threw seven innings and allowed nine hits, two earned runs, two walks, and seven strikeouts.
Cavaliers starting pitcher Jay Woolfolk dropped his record to 4-2 and threw 3.1 innings, allowing three hits, two earned runs, three walks, and three strikeouts.
No. 2 Kentucky (46-14) will play No. 3 Texas A&M (50-13) on Monday, June 17 at 7 p.m. EST in the double-elimination round.
No. 10 North Carolina State (38-22) will play Florida (34-29) on Monday, June 17 at 2 p.m. EST in the elimination round.
No. 8 Florida State (48-16) will play No. 4 North Carolina (48-15) in the elimination round on Tuesday, June 18, at 2 p.m. EST.
No. 1 Tennessee (57-12) will wait to see who they will play on Wednesday, June 19, at 2 p.m. EST. Their record is 2-0 at the 2024 NCAA Division I CWS.
All of the 2024 NCAA Division I CWS games will be televised on the ESPN networks.
Photo Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports
