TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Jacksonville baseball jumped out to an early five-run lead but ultimately fell 7-6 to No. 20 Florida State Tuesday night. It took a walk-off single in the ninth to hold off a surging JU.
The Dolphins struck immediately in the first inning by way of a first-pitch solo shot from
Cade Walter. The freshman's ASUN-leading seventh home run of the year instantly took the life out of the 5,000 Seminole fans in attendance. For
Cade Walter, this was his third first-inning home run through 13 games.
After Walter's quick trot,
Roger Vergara and
Derek Bermudez kept the momentum swinging with back-to-back singles, setting up
Abdriel Delgado for an RBI double down the right field line.
Vergara soon came around to score when
Manuel Souffrain legged out an infield single, putting the Dolphins up 3-1.
Souffrain took advantage of Bermudez's spot on third and stole second.
With runners in scoring position, Nick Delisi singled up the middle to mark the sixth hit of the inning, and his 7th RBI of the year. After batting around, JU held a 5-0 lead at Dick Howser.
The Seminoles slowly clawed their way back into the game, answering with three runs in the 1st, and a run in the 2nd, 3rd and 5th. Two of the 'Noles' early runs came from the bat of Brody DeLamielleure, cousin of former Dolphin 5-year letterwinner,
Blake DeLamielleure.
After five innings, Jacksonville trailed 6-5.
Gavin Dicks finished four and two-thirds of work with 6 Ks, 9 hits and 5 earned runs. In the fourth inning, he struck out the side of FSU's 1-2-3 hitters.
From the 6th inning on, JU's bullpen was tough as nails.
Dominic Pieto came in relief with two outs in the fifth, and struck out FSU's Gabe Fraser on a 3-2 fastball with the bases loaded. The right-hander had ultimate control of all three of his pitches tonight, as he faced five batters and struck out four of them, including the side in the sixth.
Austin Williamson carried JU to the ninth, finishing with 4 Ks, 2 H and 1 ER.
Casey Kulina's pitching staff recorded 14 strikeouts in the losing effort.
The Dolphins' equalizer came in the seventh when
Cade Walter came sliding into home on a wild pitch. His 19 runs scored are the most on the squad, and tied for the most in the ASUN Conference.
JU's next scoring opportunity came in the top of the eighth, when
Logan Baratta squared up a 2-2 breaking pitch, leaving him standing up at third. With one out, the Dolphins were unable to capitalize, as FSU's John Abraham came in and struck out two.
In the bottom of the ninth, with the bases loaded, Eli Putnam put a walk-off single in the outfield to win it for the Seminoles, 6-7.
Despite the loss, Jacksonville did not fail to swing the bats, finishing with ten hits on six runs.
Timely hitting slowed down after the first inning, as JU left eight runners on base and struck out 13 times. 54 of 113 runs scored this season can be traced to just seven separate innings, highlighting JU's ability to score in bunches.
The Dolphins' pitching staff provided key support through the middle innings and gave JU a chance heading into the ninth.
THREE STRIKES
- Jonah Shields finished with two hits to extend his hitting streak to 10 games
- Cade Walter now leads the ASUN in homeruns and runs scored, and is tied for first in the NCAA in home runs by a freshman
- Despite only 8.2 innings on the hill, Dominic Pieto leads the Dolphins with 16 strikeouts
NEXT UP
The Dolphins are back at John Sessions for a three-game weekend series versus the UNCW Seahawks. First pitch is set for Friday at 6:00 PM and is available to watch on ESPN+.
