⚾: Van Eyk, Noles Reach Regional Finals

ATHENS, Ga. – In an ACC-SEC showdown at Foley Field, Florida State (38-21) scored early and often against No. 4 national seed Georgia (45-16), winning 12-3 in front of 3,046 fans. The win moves the Seminoles to the regional finals against either Georgia or Florida Atlantic.

Box Score

CJ Van Eyk (10-3) rallied from a leadoff home run from Tucker Maxwell and threw eight innings and struck out nine Bulldogs. He did not allow a walk and gave up just two more runs against a potent Georgia offense.

Van Eyk was helped by a Seminole team that pounded out 15 hits and 12 runs against a Bulldog staff that entered with a team earned run average of 3.09. In the regional, FSU has 25 runs on 35 hits against the Owls and Bulldogs.

Nander De Sedas, Carter Smith and Tim Becker, FSU’s 7-8-9 hitters, combined to go 7-for-11 with six runs scored and nine RBI. Emerson Hancock (8-3), Georgia’s ace, allowed a season high five runs and nine hits in just 4.0 innings.

After Georgia took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third, the Noles responded in the bottom of 3^rd inning as the legend of Tim Becker continued.

The former FSU Club Baseball player hit his third home run of the regional (and career), a solo shot to right-center field, to get FSU on the board.

Mike Salvatore and Reese Albert each singled to continue the inning. With one out, Robby Martin hit a long fly ball to the wall in right-center field to bring home Salvatore from third and tie the game at 2-2.

The Seminoles took control of the game in the 4^th inning as J.C. Flowers doubled to right-center field and moved to third on a wild pitch.  He then scored on a bloop single from De Sedas to give the Noles a 3-2 advantage. After a Smith double put runners on 2^nd and 3^rd, Becker delivered again.

The senior hammered a Hancock fastball up the middle for a two-run single, extending the lead to 5-2 for FSU.

The very next inning in the 5^th, the Noles loaded the bases with back-to-back singles from Mendoza and Martin, followed by a walk to Flowers.

That’s when O’Canada worked its magic and the Noles poured it on.

De Sedas singled through the left side, scoring two runs. Then, Smith unloaded on a 3-1 offering, hitting it high off the scoreboard in right field, to extend the lead to 10-2. For Smith it was his second career homer as a Seminole.

FSU continued its onslaught in the 7^th inning as Becker walked and Salvatore drove his seventh home run of the season, clearing the pine trees in left field, giving the visitors a 12-2 lead.

The Bulldogs added a late run in the eighth inning off Van Eyk before Clayton Kwiatkowski struck out two batters in a perfect ninth inning.

Florida State moves to 38-21 in 2019 and more importantly advances to the winner’s bracket, now fully in control of their destiny. The Noles will await the winner of UGA and FAU, who would then need to beat FSU twice to advance.

First pitch Sunday will be at 6 PM.

OF NOTE:

• CJ Van Eyk improved to 10-3 in 2019 and 17-3 for his career. He tied a career high with 8.0 innings pitched and struck out 9 batters.
• Van Eyk’s career .850 win percentage ranks third-best in FSU history for players with at least 20 decisions (Gene Ammann, 1968-70, 31-2, .939; Jonathan Johnson, 1993-95, 34-5, .872).
• Over his last 8 starts, Van Eyk is 7-0. His only no decision in that span was when he threw 3.0 innings against Pitt before the game was suspended; he had 10 strikeouts in that outing.
• Van Eyk leads FSU with 115 strikeouts on the season. Drew Parrish has 112 on the year and they are one of only two pair of teammates nationally with at least 110 on the season (Asa Lacy and John Doxakis at Texas A&M).
• Van Eyk’s nine strikeouts were the most in his career without issuing a walk. Combined with Clayton Kwiatkowski’s scoreless ninth inning, FSU struck out 11 hitters and did not allow a walk for the fourth time this season (second time in a 9-inning game).
• The Seminoles need two more wins to reach 40 wins for the 42^nd consecutive season.
• Georgia’s leadoff home run was the second allowed by FSU this season. Clemson hit a leadoff home run on April 13 and FSU went on to win 16-2. Both home runs came on the second pitch of the game.
• J.C. Flowers extended his hitting streak to a career-high nine games.
• Carter Smith hit his second home run of the year; Tim Becker hit his third and Mike Salvatore hit his seventh. As a team, FSU has 78 home runs, its most since hitting 86 in 2010.
• Nander De Sedas set a career high with three hits, while Smith and Becker each had two. Each player also had three RBIs in the 7-8-9 slots in the lineup.
• Over the past three games (ACC Tournament and NCAA Regional), FSU has 51 hits and 36 runs in 24 innings.
• Saturday’s win snapped Georgia’s 14-game home winning streak, the longest active streak in the country. The Bulldogs fell to 28-4 at Foley Field this year.
• Georgia ace Emerson Hancock had not allowed more than three runs or six hits all season; FSU tagged the right-hander for five runs and nine hits in 4.0 innings.

For more information on Florida State baseball, check Seminoles.com for the latest news and scheduling information, or keep up with the team on social media through Twitter (@FSUBaseball), Facebook (/FSUBaseball), and Instagram (@NoleBaseball).