3 up, 3 down: Florida State wins ACC Tournament for second time in three years

For the second time in three years, and for the seventh time in school history, Florida State has won the ACC Tournament, defeating UNC 7-3.

Three up:

1. Drew Mendoza was on fire during Sunday’s game, and was a very integral component in the win. The freshman went 2-3 with two home runs, with his second a three run shot to give FSU a four lead cushion. Along with the two hits, Mendoza reached base two times via a walk and had four total RBI.
2. After Andrew Karp struggled through three innings, allowing three runs (two earned), the FSU bullpen was immaculate —- No, that wasn’t a typo. Drew Parrish threw 2 2/3 scoreless and hitless innings, striking out five followed by Alec Byrd throwing 1 1/3 hitless innings of his own, punching out one. Drew Carlton gave up three total hit in his two scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth inning. All together, the trio threw six innings of scoreless baseball, allowing three hits and four walks while striking out seven.
3. The victory plays huge implications for Florida State’s regional seed. First, FSU is now just one win away from reaching 40 wins for the 40th consecutive season. It also gives the ‘Noles a decent chance to host a regional tournament, something that seemed nearly impossible a few weeks back. In their last 14 games, FSU is 12-2, outscoring opponents 117-55.

Three down:

1. Florida State needed a big time outing from Andrew Karp, and unfortunately the redshirt sophomore did not perform as well as Mike Martin would have hoped. Karp allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits and two walks in three innings. It wasn’t an abysmal start, but you would expect more from your starter in a championship game.
2. Fielding once again hurt FSU, as two errors resulted in an unearned run before FSU even got on the scoreboard. Even though the Seminoles were able to come back and win, allowing the other team to increase its lead due to fielding mishaps when behind could affect the morale, and any comeback attempt. Fortunately, this was not one of the cases, but nevertheless a down.
3. J.C. Flowers had an ACC Tourney he wished he could forget. After an 0-3 day with one strikeout in the championship game, Flowers finished the ACC Tournament 0-16 with 8 Ks and zero walks. Not what you want from an every day player.

Florida State will now be tuned into tonight’s NCAA Regional site hosting which will be announced at 8:30 PM.