CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Scoring in the first inning for the 26th time this season, the Seminoles took game one of the series as No. 3 Florida State (33-3, 6-1 ACC) defeated Virginia (16-15, 5-5 ACC) 11-0 on Friday evening at The Park. The Noles plated two runs in the first inning and have now scored 83 first-inning runs in 2019.
Dani Morgan led the Seminoles offensively with a two-run double in the first inning and a three-run HR in the fourth inning as the five RBI by Morgan on Friday set a career high for the junior, and all five came with two outs.
“We did a great job of coming in focused and executing our plans today,” said FSU head coach Lonni Alameda. “We took advantage of our opportunities and the pitching and defense made it difficult for Virginia to get anything going. Dani had a great day at the plate for us and she has been very consistent for us all season long.”
The Seminoles jumped out to an early lead as Sydney Sherrill and Elizabeth Mason each drew walks and Morgan made it 2-0 Florida State with a double to right center in the top of the first.
Florida State added four more runs in the second inning as the Noles loaded the bases on a double by Anna Shelnutt, an infield single by Leslie Farris and a walk by Cali Harrod. Carsyn Gordon brought in a run on an infield single and Sherrill made it 6-0 Seminoles with a three-run double to left center.
It was a team-high 10th double of the season for Sherrill, and increased the career total for the sophomore to 39, which is tied with Victoria East (2013-16) and Brandi Stuart (2000-03) for seventh place in FSU history.
The Seminoles plated four more runs in the top of the fourth inning, all with two outs, to take a 10-0 lead. Gordon lined a solo home run to right field, and after a single by Sherrill and a walk by Mason, Morgan hit a three-run home run to center.
Makinzy Herzog entered to pitch the bottom of the fourth for the Noles, ending Meghan King’s day in the circle. The redshirt senior improved to 17-1 on the season, allowing just three hits over 3.0 shutout innings with zero walks and four strikeouts. King has not allowed a run in her last 23.1 innings in the circle.
The Noles added another run in the top of the fifth as FSU loaded the bases on a single by Herzog and walks by Cassidy Davis and Deja Bush. Gordon drove in her second run of the game on an RBI fielder’s choice.
Herzog retired all six batters she faced in the circle, including a pair of strikeouts, to end the game.
The Seminoles and Cavaliers will continue the series on Saturday, March 30 at 1:00 p.m., with UVA’s annual Unite the Fight game. Both Virginia and Florida State will participate in events to bring awareness to cancer and support those currently fighting the disease. The game will air on ACC Network Extra and links for the broadcast and live stats will be available on the softball schedule page of Seminoles.com.
Fans can listen to the FSU softball coaching staff, head coach Lonni Alameda and assistant coaches Travis Wilson and Craig Snider, on their weekly podcast: Coaches and Coffee – The FSU Softball Podcast. Each week, the coaches talk about the current state of the Seminole softball team, chat about NCAA softball from around the country, and have a lot of fun along the way. The podcast can be found on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, or directly at our website – fsusoftballpodcast.wordpress.com.
Throughout 2018-19, the Seminoles will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of women’s intercollegiate athletics at Florida State and there are many events and reunions planned for all women’s sports. Head to www.seminoles.com/50th/ for more information that will be updated throughout the year.
Follow Florida State softball on Twitter (@FSU_Softball) and Instagram (fsusoftball), and like our Facebook page (Facebook.com/FSUsoftball) to keep up to date with everything about Seminole softball.
