ATLANTA — After posting an early 2-0 advantage in the first inning, No. 14 Florida State (28-6, 8-0 ACC) led the entire game as the Noles posted a 4-2 win over Georgia Tech (19-14, 5-3 ACC) on Saturday afternoon at Shirley Clements Mewborn Field.
The win extended FSU’s ACC winning streak to 34 games, which is tied with Texas State for the sixth-longest conference winning streak in NCAA history as the Bobcats won 34 straight Southland Conference games from 2000-02.
“Tough battle today, but glad to see is fight and work through each of the situations,” said FSU head coach Lonni Alameda. “These weekends are about adjustments from game to game, at bat to at bat and pitch to pitch. We worked deep into some counts and drew some walks early in the game which enabled us to score some early runs. Now we’ve both seen each other and tomorrow will be a fight to close out the series.”
Just like Friday night, Cali Harrod led off the top of the first with a double to left field. A walk to Carsyn Gordon and Sydney Sherrill getting hit by a pitch loaded the bases for the Noles with nobody out. GT starting pitcher threw a wild pitch to Jessie Warren, allowing Harrod to score from third. Warren’s at bat continued and she hit an RBI groundout to second base to give FSU a 2-0 lead.
It marked the 241st RBI of Warren’s career, moving her into a tie for 20th in NCAA history with a pair of Tennessee players – Tonya Callahan (2005-08) and current Volunteer shortstop Meghan Gregg.
Georgia Tech opened its first inning with a double as well, and leadoff hitter Cameron Stanford moved to third on an FSU error. FSU’s Meghan King retired the next batter with a strikeout, but Katie Krzus cut into the FSU lead with an RBI single to center. The Seminoles got out of the inning a batter later as a ground ball to Leslie Farris started an inning-ending double play.
Gordon drove in a run for FSU in the top of the second, knocking an RBI single up the middle with two outs in the inning. Farris poked a single to right field earlier in the inning and moved up to second on a bunt by Klaevemann before scoring her 12th run of the season.
The Yellow Jackets threatened in the third inning getting runners to first and second with one out on a walk by Kelsey Chisholm and a single by Stanford. King got out of the jam with a pair of strikeouts, both looking.
Harrod extended the FSU lead to 4-1 with a solo home run to right center in the fourth inning, her second extra-base hit of the game.
Kylee Hanson replaced King in the circle to start the GT fourth inning. The redshirt senior needed just six pitches to retire the Jackets in the inning and sent down the first seven batters she faced until a one-out walk by Draven Sonnon in the sixth inning.
Georgia Tech got a run back in the seventh on a solo home run by Crosby Huckabay, but Hanson retired the final two batters to secure the 4-2 win. Hanson improved to 16-3 with 4.0 innings of relief, allowing one run on one hit with a walk and three strikeouts. King scattered three hits and a walk, giving up an unearned run and recorded four strikeouts.
The FSU-GT series wraps up on Sunday, April 1 at 1:00 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra. Broadcast links for video, FSU softball radio and live stats will be available on the softball schedule page of Seminoles.com.
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