TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A 6-0 deficit through three innings proved too much to overcome as Florida State (27-18, 11-12 ACC) fell to No. 14 Virginia (35-11, 14-10) 7-5 Sunday afternoon on Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium. All five runs came via the long ball, as Dylan Busby hit a solo home run and Drew Mendoza and Quincy Nieporte connected for two-run home runs to close the deficit.
“I was proud of our ball club,” head coach Mike Martin said. “We could have folded the tent and felt sorry for ourselves. We got out there and battled. We're down 6-0 after three and there was no quit.
“Credit Virginia. They are a legit Top 10-team.”
Florida State starter Andrew Karp (0-3) struggled out of the gate, allowing four hits and a walk to the first five batters he faced before being replaced by Drew Parrish. Virginia scored four runs in the opening frame and added one each in the second and third off Parrish to take a 6-0 lead. Parrish threw 4.0 innings in relief, allowing two runs on four hits and striking out three.
In the bottom of the fourth, Busby's tenth home run of the year put FSU on the board, and three batters later, Mendoza's third home run cut the gap to 6-3. Busby and Mendoza both homered in Friday's series opener as well.
Virginia earned its final run in the sixth inning off Alec Byrd. Byrd threw 1.1 innings in relief of Parrish before giving way to Drew Carlton. Carlton kept Florida State in the game, allowing just three hits and no runs over the final 3.2 innings. In the eighth, he struck out the side, his only three strikeouts of the game.
Virginia starter Adam Haseley (7-1) went 5.0 innings, allowing four runs on four hits. After hitting Dylan Busby to open the sixth inning, he gave way to closer Tommy Doyle. With one out, Nieporte's ninth home run of the season made the score 7-5 as FSU inched closer.
With two outs in the inning, Rhett Aplin singled and Matt Henderson walked, and both players advanced on a passed ball. Steven Wells, starting in the outfield for Jackson Lueck (illness), struck out swinging to end the last real threat the Seminoles had.
Doyle settled down after that, allowing only one baserunner (a ninth-inning walk to Aplin) over the next three innings to earn his 12th save of the year.
For the Cavaliers, they pounded out 13 hits a day after tallying 16 hits. Five players had at least two hits, and Caleb Knight, who entered hitting .417, was the only player not to have at least one.
