Fifth-Seeded Virginia Upset by Ninth-Seeded FSU in Pool Play

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Florida State (33-22) scored the first nine runs in a 13-3 win in eight innings over No. 15 Virginia (38-16) on Wednesday (May 25) at Truist Field. The winner of the Seminoles game against Notre Dame on Thursday (May 26) will determine who advances to the semifinals out of Pool D.

Kyle Teel, Griff O’Ferrall and Jake Gelof each had two hits in the contest, accounting for six of the 10 Virginia base knocks on the afternoon.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Virginia starter Brian Gursky got off to a good start, fanning three batters over his first two innings but Florida State was able to jump all over the lefthander in the third. The Seminoles rallied for six runs, tied for the most in a single inning by a Virginia opponent this season. The six-run outburst was capped by a two-run homer by Alex Torral.
• After Florida State tacked on two more runs in the fourth, Virginia got on the board thanks to three-straight, two-out RBI hits to make the score 9-3. Teel plated UVA’s first run with his third triple of the season. Freshman Casey Saucke followed with a double down the left field line that scored Teel easily. The Virginia threat ended with an RBI single up the middle from Ethan Anderson.
• Reese Albert, who came on as a defensive replacement in the fifth, hit his first home run of the season in the seventh to put FSU up 11-3.
• Torral finished his four-RBI afternoon with a two-out, RBI single in the top of the eighth to make it a 10-run Seminole advantage.

FROM HEAD COACH BRIAN O’CONNOR

“I just want to congratulate Florida State, they beat us in every facet of the game. They were really good out on the mound. (Wyatt) Crowell, who pitched the back half of the game, is the best left hander we’ve seen all year. They went on the aggressive attack against us offensively and they just really beat us in every phase of the game. They handled the ball better on the infield, they got clutch hits. I think we had 10 hits but only three runs, and that speaks to the level of their pitching staff, pitching with runners in scoring position. Offensively, they really capitalized. The bottom line is, my responsibility as the leader of the program is to get our team ready for games like this, and obviously that didn’t happen. I accept full responsibility for that. That’s part of my role, to make sure that our guys are ready to play, and we weren’t ready to play, and that played out in every facet of the game. Florida State has a very, very good team. It showed, certainly, the depth and the quality of this league.”

UP NEXT: Virginia will conclude pool play on Friday (May 27) with the opening game of the day against fourth-seeded Notre Dame at 11 a.m.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• Including Wednesday’s contest, Virginia has allowed an opponent to score five or more runs in an inning six times this season. Miami on April 10 and Pitt on April 15 were the two other opponents to score six runs in an inning against UVA this season.
• Virginia racked up 10 hits and lost for the fourth time this season when recording double-digit hits as a team.
• The Cavaliers are 25-4 when recording 10 or more hits.
• UVA drops to 8-10 against the Seminoles in the ACC Tournament with the last win coming in 2013.
• The Cavaliers were run-ruled in the tournament for the first time since 2006, also coming against Florida State (11-0).