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“I think our regional is as hard as anybody,” was Link Jarrett’s original thought when breaking down the Tallahassee regional.
Florida State needs to take down the Alabama Crimson Tide (33-23, 13-17 SEC), UCF Knights (35-19, 14-15, Big 12), and Stetson Hatters (40-20, ASUN champs) to host a super-regional where they’d most likely face the Oklahoma Sooners, the No. 9 national seed, or the Duke Blue Devils, the No. 2 seed in the Norman regional.
What makes this grouping unique is the overlap FSU has with every team.
Starting with Alabama: The Seminoles visited the Crimson Tide for two scrimmages last fall. Bama assistant coach Jason Jackson is a Tallahassee native who went to the same high school as Jarrett, and there are two former Tide players on the Seminole roster, Max Williams and Jaxson West.
Two former UCF players are also on the roster in Drew Faurot and Cam Leiter, while Knights’ head coach Rich Wallace was most recently at Florida State after spending three seasons with Link Jarrett at Notre Dame.
Meanwhile, Stetson broke the Seminoles’ undefeated record against in-state schools in early May with a 10-5 win after the ‘Noles beat the Hatters 1-0 in March.
At first glance, the regional seems deep, but not as top-heavy as others, like the Norman regional. The No. 2 seed, Alabama, has series wins over the Tennessee Volunteers, Arkansas Razorbacks, and LSU Tigers, but struggled to the end the regular season with a series loss to their arch-rival Auburn Tigers, and a one-and-done trip in the SEC tournament. UCF also has high-quality wins, with a series victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys and a mid-week win against the Florida Gators, but they also split their two games with Stetson. The Hatters went 40-20, but the familiarity may benefit Florida State, as the Noles shouldn’t be caught sleeping in their postseason opener.
Alabama
Conference: SEC
Record: 33-22 (13-17)
Head Coach: Rob Vaughn (1st season)
Position player to know: 3B Gage Miller (R)
Miller spent two years at community college before setting Tuscaloosa on fire. The junior leadoff man sports a .381 BA, fourth best in the conference. He boasts a .721 SLG and .473 OBP, and has as many walks as strikeouts.
Pitcher to know: Greg Farone (L)
Farone finished the season as the Friday starter and received the ball for their only game in the SEC tournament. According to prep baseball, he runs his fastball up to 93-94 while throwing a curveball and changeup off of it. He leads the Tide with 65.1 innings pitched and 61 strikeouts.
Lineup facts: In their only game in the SEC tournament, the Tide started six left-handed bats, and eight out of nine players were upperclassmen. The top seven hit over .300, including Ian Petrutz, who hits .325 and has a .447 OBP, and catcher Mac Guscette, who hits .333 and became a Buster Posey Award semifinalist. The order doesn’t possess much power, as only Miller has more than 15 home runs, but they wear down pitching staffs with their approach and ability to get on base.
Pitching staff facts: In conference play, they stayed relatively healthy and started Ben Hess (R), who racked up 98 strikeouts and 32 walks, both team-highs, alongside Zane Adams (L), a 6’4’ freshman who pitches to contact. They bring a variety of arms out of their bullpen, with six guys throwing 15 or more innings. Braylon Myers (R), with 27 strikeouts in 31.2 IP, and Alton Davis (L), who stands 6’5’, combined for seven saves.
UCF
Conference: Big-12
Record: 35-19 (14-15)
Head Coach: Rich Wallace (1st season)
Position player to know: LF Matt Prevesk (L)
A top-300 national player out of high school, Prevesk spent his first two seasons as a Florida Gator. The left-hander started 11 games for UF in the outfield and at DH. In his first season at UCF, Prevesk started all 54 games for the Golden Knights and hit at a .347 clip.
Pitcher to know: Dominic Castellano (L)
After struggling mightily in his freshman and sophomore seasons, Castellano found his footing this year. He’s only started one game, but appeared in 20 overall, recording a 6-0 record with three saves. He’s struck out 66, while only walking 23. The southpaw has held opponents to a .157 average.
Lineup facts: The Knights enter the Tallahassee regional with only 57 home-runs as a team, the lowest of the four squads. Right fielder Jack Zysak leads the team with 10 long-balls. UCF also carries a 22% K rate, compared to an 11% walk rate.
Pitching staff facts: UCF relies on their relievers often with 21 of their 35 wins coming from non-starters. Kyle Kramer, Castellano, and Chase Centala combined for a 19-3 record, even though they had just one combined start. Of the traditional starters, Ben Vespi has the most victories (4) in 15 starts.
Stetson
Conference: ASUN
Record: 40-20 (20-10)
Head Coach: Steve Trimper (8th season)
Position player to know: CF Kyle Jones (R)
As Jones goes, the Hatters go. The ASUN Freshman of the Year leads Stetson in batting average (.352), hits (83), OBP (.461), stolen bases (22), HBP (15), and is tied for the doubles lead (14).
Pitcher(s) to know: Cole Stallings (R) and Zane Coppersmith (R)
Stallings moved from the rotation last season to the bullpen ace in 2024. The right-hander has made 25 appearances and recorded 11 saves. His setup man is Zane Coppersmith who made 23 appearances of his own and posted a 1.55 ERA. They’re a formidable duo out of the bullpen holding opponents to a sub-.200 average.
Lineup facts: While not a team known for power, the Hatters can tee off at any time, as the Seminoles found out in their aforementioned loss to Stetson. The Hatters top three hitters (Jones, Isaiah Barkett, and Lorenzo Meola) all carry a batting average over .300 and combined for 52 extra-base hits.
Pitching staff facts: Stetson’s top four rotation arms by number of starts (Anthony DeFabbia, Daniel Paret, Dylan Jacobs, and John Modugno) all carry ERAs above 4.50 this season. Despite the high ERA, three of the four arms posted winning records. Modugno and Jacobs started in Stetson’s two games against FSU.
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