Long Ball Powers Noles Past Hatters

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (SEMINOLES.COM) — No. 20 Florida State (21-15) hit four home runs in a 9-5 win over Stetson (22-15) Tuesday at Dick Howser Stadium. Eight of the Seminoles nine runs came via home run, while Tyler Ahearn (1-1) provided a pair of strong innings out of the bullpen in the win.

Catcher Mat Nelson, the nation’s leader in home runs and RBI, hit his 19^th of the season in the first inning. Nelson’s 19 home runs are the most for a Seminole in 12 years and four more than any other player in the country.

Nander De Sedas, Elijah Cabell and Robby Martin added multi-run homers later in the game. For the year, those four have combined to hit 45 home runs.

Ahearn allowed just one hit and struck out four batters in 2.0 innings out of the bullpen for his first win of the year.

Stetson took the early lead with a pair of runs in the first inning, courtesy of a hit batter and three hits. Carson Montgomery worked a scoreless second inning, exiting with four hits allowed and two runs with a pair of strikeouts.

The Seminoles combined to strike out 15 Stetson batters.

After Nelson’s solo home run in the first inning, De Sedas’s seventh homer of the year gave the Seminoles the lead and Cabell’s 10^th of the season in the fourth pushed the FSU lead to 5-2.

Stetson starter Anthony DeFabbia (2-1) allowed the first three home runs. The freshman allowed seven hits, including four in the Noles three-run fourth inning. Logan Lacey drew a bases loaded walk for a 6-2 lead through four innings.

The Hatters tacked on an unearned run in the sixth inning. Reliever Ross Dunn threw a career-high 1.2 innings in relief, with three strikeouts.

Robby Martin answered in the bottom of the sixth with his ninth home run, a three-run blast to right field that scored Tyler Martin and Lacey. The Seminoles hit four home runs in a game for the fourth time this season, and all four came off the bats of third-year sophomores.

Robby Martin ranks third in the ACC with 42 runs batted in this season.

The Hatters scored runs in the seventh and ninth innings to provide the final margin. Freshmen Wyatt Crowell and Andrew Armstrong combined for the final two innings, striking out four with two hits allowed.

OF NOTE:

• Mat Nelson homered for the fourth straight game and leads the country with 19. Nelson is tied for 18^th-most in FSU history and the most for a Nole since Mike McGee in 2009.
• Nelson needed just 36 team games to reach 19 home runs, tied with J.D. Drew in 1997 for the second-quickest in FSU history (Jeff Ledbetter hit No. 19 in Game 21 in 1982).
• Nelson also leads the country with 54 runs batted in. The reigning ACC Player of the Week and Perfect Game National Player of the Week is the second Nole with a four-game home run streak this season (Elijah Cabell).
• Nelson threw out his 12^th base runner of the season. He has thrown out 48 percent (12-of-25) of attempted basestealers this year.
• Nander De Sedas hit a two-run home run to give FSU the lead in the second inning. De Sedas has a home run in back-to-back games and a career-high seven on the year. He is 7-for-13 over the past four games with two homers and a triple.
• Elijah Cabell hit his 10^th home run of the season, a two-run blast in the fourth inning. Cabell’s 10 home runs are a career high and him and Nelson have the most home runs for a duo in the country (29).
• Tyler Martin singled to load the bases in the fourth inning. He has successfully reached base in 47 of his 50 career starts. His walk in the sixth inning pushed his ACC lead to 37.
• Reliever Ross Dunn set career-highs with 1.2 innings pitched and three strikeouts.
• CF Isaiah Perry made the first start of his career. The junior hit back-to-back doubles, the first extra-base hits of his career, before leaving the game on a hit by pitch.
• FSU hit four or more home runs for the fourth time this season. The Seminoles lead the ACC with 58 for the season.
• Chase Haney pitched for the 26^th time this season, the most pitching appearances in the country. He has thrown in 133 career games, three shy of tying the FSU record.

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).