Seminole Sunday Sauce — May 26, 2024: FSU Baseball Advances to ACC Championship
Florida State will enter the final Sunday before the start of the NCAA Tournament with a championship on the line. The Seminoles have gone 3-0 so far in the ACC Tournament and will play for the conference title against Duke on Sunday.
Fifth-seeded FSU clinched its pool with a 12-9 victory over Georgia Tech on Tuesday and a 12-7 win over Virginia on Friday. In Tuesday’s victory, FSU was powered by four home runs with Marco Dinges, Jaime Ferrer, Daniel Cantu and Drew Faurot each leaving the yard. Faurot finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs.
FSU led 8-1 early. The ninth-seeded Yellow Jackets got as close as two with five runs in the seventh, but the Seminoles created some breathing room with four runs in the eighth.
On Friday, Jamie Arnold shined on the mound, allowing just two runs on four hits in six innings. ACC Player of the Year James Tibbs III finished with five RBIs while Faurot and Alex Lodise each recorded three of FSU’s 16 hits.
FSU blew things open with seven runs in the seventh to push the lead to 11-2. No. 4 seed Virginia used three home runs in the bottom of the inning to push across five runs and make it an 11-7 game, but never scored again. Tibbs capped the scoring with a line-drive home run to right in the eighth.
FSU punched its ticket to the ACC Championship with a 9-6 win over eight-seeded Wake Forest in the semifinals. The Seminoles trailed 3-0 early before tying the game with three runs on the second, thanks to big hits from Cantu and Max Williams. Faurot’s 2-run single in the fifth put the Seminoles ahead for good.
Williams helped create some breathing room with a 2-run blast in the sixth before adding an RBI fielder’s choice in the seventh. Williams finished 3-for-5 with four RBIs.
With two wins over top-15 teams so far in Charlotte, FSU hopes to have assured itself a top-8 national seed. The Seminoles can bolster their case with a win over the Blue Devils on Sunday. They will learn their NCAA Tournament fate on Monday.
FOOTBALL
Recognitions: None
Commitments: None
Decommitments: None
2025 Recruiting Class Rank: No. 49 nationally, 11th in ACC (4 total commitments)
Wrap-up: Less than three months separates FSU from Dublin.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Recognitions: None
Commitments: None
Decommitments: None
2025 Recruiting Class Rank: No. 10 nationally, second in ACC (1 total commitment)
Wrap-up: It was a relatively quiet week for FSU hoops.
Track and Field
Ranking: Men No. 6 USTFCCCA South Region; women No. 19 USTFCCCA, No. 8 South Region
Past Week: Participated in NCAA East Region Championships
Upcoming: NCAA Championships (June 5-8)
Recognitions: None
Wrap-up: Nearly 20 Seminoles punched their ticket to the NCAA Championships
Men’s Golf
Ranking: No. 6 GCAA Coaches Poll
Past Week: Currently seventh at NCAA Championships
Upcoming: NCAA Championships (Sunday-Wednesday)
Recognitions: None
Wrap-up: FSU finds itself in position to advance to the quarterfinals. Two more rounds of stroke play remain.
Women’s Golf
Ranking: No. 19 WGCAA Coaches Poll
Past Week: Finished 11th at NCAA Championships
Recognitions: None
Wrap-up: FSU was unable to reach the quarterfinals, but will close with a top-15 finish.
Softball
Record: 46-16
Ranking: No. 16 USA Softball; No. 16 D1Softball; No. 12 USA TODAY/NFCA Coaches Poll; No. 16 Softball America; No. 15 national seed NCAA Tournament
Past Week: (1-2), beat Auburn in NCAA Tournament on Saturday, 10-4; lost to Oklahoma in Norman Super Regional on Thursday in five innings, 11-3; lost Oklahoma in Norman Super Regional on Friday, 4-2
Recognitions: None
Wrap-up: Another strong season for FSU came to an end. Reigning national champion Oklahoma proved to be too much.
Baseball
Record: 42-14
Ranking: No. 11 Baseball America; No. 8 NCBWA; No. 8 USA Today Coaches; No. 10 D1Baseball; No. 5 seed ACC Tournament
Past Week: (3-0), beat Georgia Tech on Tuesday in ACC Tournament, 12-9; beat Virginia on Friday in ACC Tournament, 12-7; beat Wake Forest in ACC Tournament semifinals, 9-6
Upcoming: vs. Duke (ACC Championship); vs. TBD (NCAA Tournament)
Recognitions: Jamie Arnold, P (All-ACC first team); Cam Smith, 3B (All-ACC second team); James Tibbs, OF (ACC Player of the Year, All-ACC first team); Marco Dinges, IF (All-ACC third team); Jaime Ferrer, OF (All-ACC third team)
Wrap-up: FSU aims for its first ACC title since 2018 on Sunday.
*Recruiting rankings according to the 247Sports Composite rankings
- Mike Ferguson is the lead writer for Double Fries No Slaw. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson. For all of his work, “Like” or “Follow” Mike on Facebook.
