FSU vs. UCF in Tallahasse Regional: How to watch and stream, preview, game thread

After kicking off NCAA Tournament play with a win over the Stetson Hatters, the Florida State Seminoles are matched up against another familiar intrastate opponent in the Tallahassee Regional — the UCF Knights.

UCF beat Alabama 8-7 on Friday, its first NCAA Tournament win since 2012, earning the Knights the right to face off against the Seminoles. The loser will battle with the winner of the Alabama-Stetson matchup to avoid elimination, while the winner will advance to the Tallahassee Regional final.

FSU faced off against UCF in a two-game series last season, losing both games vs. the Knights in Link Jarrett’s first year leading the Seminoles, and each program has seen plenty of change since then. UCF is in its first year with Rich Wallace — Jarrett’s assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator last season and at Notre Dame — as well as in the Big 12, while Florida State successfully reinvented itself en route to earning a top eight national seed.

The Seminoles saw Carson Dorsey pitch over eight innings in Friday’s victory over Stetson, striking out seven and allowing just one earned run (two total) to set the tone for the weekend:

With a depleted starting rotation and an inconsistent bullpen, Link Jarrett needed to decide where to use 1st team All-ACC pitcher Jamie Arnold. Jarrett said he and his staff deliberated for days but agreed it would be best to use him in a higher-leverage spot on Saturday. That meant Carson Dorsey received the ball for game one of the Tallahassee regional. After getting shelled in Charlotte, nobody knew what Dorsey would deliver.

As Jarrett would say, today, he delivered the goods...and saved the Seminole bullpen for the rest of the weekend

He ran his fastball up to 94 while dropping his curveball off it, keeping Hatter hitters off balance the entire afternoon. However, most impressively, Dorsey dominated with runners on base. He had two runners on four times in nine innings but only gave up one earned run. He never let his last at-bat affect the next one and responded when the game hung in the balance. He received sporadic run support, but two early solo shots put FSU out in front, and they never relinquished the lead.

Florida State Seminoles vs. UCF Knights: How to watch, stream

Time:

• 8 p.m.

Starting pitchers:

• UCF: RHP Ben Vespi (4-3, 4.44 ERA)
• FSU: LHP Jamie Arnold (10-3, 2.45 ERA)

How to stream:

• ESPN+

How to watch:

• No TV broadcast announced

How to listen:

• Seminoles Radio Network

Tallahassee Regional: Schedule, how to watch

• Game 1: Florida State 7, Stetson 2
• Game 2: UCF 8, Alabama 7
• Game 3: Stetson vs. Alabama, 3:30 ET, Saturday June 1, ESPNU
• Game 4: FSU vs. UCF, 8 p.m. ET, Saturday June 1, ESPN+
• Game 5: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 loser, noon ET, Sunday June 2, TV TBA
• Game 6: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 6 p.m. ET, Sunday June 2, TV TBA
• Game 7 (if necessary): Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, Monday June 3, time and TV TBA

What to know about the UCF Knights

(from our preview published earlier this week)

Conference: Big-12

Record: 36-19 (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.