[dropcap]S[/dropcap]enior Mike Compton got the nod to kick off the season for Florida State. With Friday night marking his second opening day start for the Seminoles, Compton admitted that he felt a little nervous.
“It was bittersweet, being the last opening day for me. It was fun to just get out there and play some baseball again.”
Compton struggled a little in the first inning, but managed to escape any early jam thanks to a 1-2-5-6 double play. Compton would give Florida State five strong innings, striking out two batters and only allowing one earned run, while throwing just 67 pitches.
Opening day got off to a quite start, with FSU holding the 5-0 lead going into the 5th inning.
Rhode Island’s LF Mike Foley kicked off the 5th inning with an absolute moon shot to left field, which bounced high off the Florida State scoreboard getting the Rams on the board and cutting the FSU lead to 5-1 as they entered the bottom of the 5th.
The Rams brought in Blaise Whitman to pitch, and Florida State was able to jump all over the new pitcher. FSU called in junior Gage West to pinch hit, and West delivered, taking a 1-1 pitch way over the 30’ foot wall in right field, but FSU did not stop there. They tagged the Rams for 10 runs in the bottom 5th. The game was all but over after that.
FSU easily took home the first game of the series 19-1
GAME TWO
FSU did not manage to explode for another 19 runs in game two, but they still outscored Rhode Island 8-1.
Drew Carlton got the Saturday night start for Florida State and was not a disappointment. He threw five good innings for the Seminoles during which he succeeded in striking out six batters, while only walking two.
Much like Friday night, Florida State did not waste much time taking advantage of the Rhode Island pitching. In the 3rd inning, John Sansone stepped up to the plate and hit his second career grand slam. This put the Seminoles on top of the board 4-1 after Rhode Island reached home plate on an error.
While Drew Carlton played exceptionally, it was freshmen Tyler Holton who stole the show in his first collegiate appearance. Holton came in to relieve Carlton in the 6th inning and proceeded to strike out the side in order. He came back out for a quick 7th inning, during which he struck out the first batter, followed by him sending the next two back to the dug out after a fly out and a ground out.
Holton wound up pitching the last four innings for FSU, picking up his first save in college. Tyler went 4.0 innings, striking out six batters, walking one and giving up one hit.
GAME THREE
After already winning the series, FSU now had their sights set on the sweep.
Cole Sands was making both his first start of the season and his first start in his collegiate career for FSU, and he was excellent. Like Tyler Holton, Sands is also a local freshman from the Tallahassee area. He also managed to strike out the first batter he faced just as Holton had.
Sands kicked off the game with a smooth 1-2-3 inning. John Sansone came up in the first inning and hit his second homerun in as many days, this one a two run shot.
“Its always nice to pitch with the lead,” Sands said, “Especially in your first start. It was nice not to have to worry about it.”
Sands pitched the next four innings, only giving up one hit and one earned run, while striking out six batters.
FSU had already outscored the Rhode Island Rams 27-2 coming into the Sunday matchup, and they continued the trend during their final game.
FSU came into the 4th with a 6-1 lead. They proceeded to score five more runs in the inning, increasing their lead to 11-1.
Entering the 6th, FSU boasted a 13-1 lead, but they still were not satisfied. The Seminoles scored and additional seven runs in the inning on five hits, now dominating the Rams 20-1.
With the Florida State bats this hot, it did not matter which batter stepped up to the plate. FSU scored three more in the 7th, making it 23-1. They would eventually go on to win it 23-4.
