Duke entered this weekend’s series as heavy underdogs to a No. 7 Florida State squad that had lost just six times all year. Unable to contain the Seminoles’ potent offense, the Blue Devils were dispatched in all three games, losing 16-2, 8-5 and 8-3.
“I give a lot of credit to Florida State,” Duke head coach Chris Pollard said. “They came into the weekend [ranked No. 7] in the country, and they played like it.”
In game one of the series, Florida State scored early, pushing across two runs in the bottom of the first inning. Duke (21-17, 8-10 in the ACC) responded right away, as redshirt sophomore Chris Marconcini launched his eighth home run of the season in the top of the second to cut the deficit to 2-1.
But the Seminoles (30-6, 13-5) seized control of the game with four runs in the fourth inning and broke it open with four more in the fifth. Duke starter Trent Swart was roughed up, allowing eight earned runs in 4.1 innings on the mound. Blue Devil relievers also struggled against the dynamic Florida State offense, allowing two runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings.
“We pitched up in the zone too much [all weekend],” Pollard said. “Florida State laid off some pitcher’s pitches early in the count, so we had to pitch from behind in the count a lot, which gave them good opportunities to hit.”
The Blue Devils weren’t sharp defensively Friday, as two Duke errors led to two Seminole runs. Florida State spread the offense around with four Seminoles picking up three hits apiece. The Seminoles notched 16 hits while Duke managed eight against Florida State starter Luke Weaver and the Seminole bullpen.
The series was originally scheduled to go through Sunday, but the threat of severe thunderstorms forced the teams into playing two games Saturday. In game one of the day-night doubleheader, the Seminole offense was again too much for Duke to handle. Leading 1-0 in the third inning, Florida State strung together three singles and a groundout to push the score to 3-0 against Duke starter Drew Van Orden. Catcher Stephen McGee continued the rally with a two-run homer to bring the score to 5-0. The blast was followed by a second dinger by Jose Brizuela, who went 3-for-3 at the plate. Van Orden was tagged for seven runs on 12 hits in seven innings while striking out eight.
The Blue Devils had 12 hits of their own, but couldn’t break through on the scoreboard until the eighth inning, when Grant McCabe singled home David Perkins.
“We didn’t do a good job stringing hits together,” Pollard said. “We spaced them out.”
The Blue Devils put a scare into the Seminoles at the end of Saturday’s first game, though. Trailing 8-1 entering the top of the ninth, Duke made a bid for a thrilling rally, scoring four runs with two outs. After Perkins singled home a run, Andy Perez was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Senior outfielder Jeff Kremer then drove a ball down the right field line for a bases-clearing double before Florida State could finally shut the door on an 8-5 win.
The nightcap of the doubleheader was more of the same: the unrelenting Seminole offense pulled away early from the Blue Devils, who once again were inefficient at the plate.
Junior left fielder Mark Lumpa collected two hits for the Blue Devils, extending his hitting streak to nine games.
“He’s continued to have good at-bats and continued to provide a spark on offense,” Pollard said.
Although the weekend was an offensive showcase for the other side, Duke had chances in all three games and ultimately fell to a better team.
“It wasn’t so much about us playing poorly as it was about them playing really well,” Pollard said.
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