Baseball Falls 14-3 To No. 1 Florida State
April 16, 2000
Coral Gables, FL – No. 1 Florida State (37-7) did not waste a lot of time as the Seminoles scored 10 runs over the first three innings en route to 14-3 win in six innings over No. 17 Miami (26-13-1) to avoid the three-game sweep at Mark Light Stadium. The game started after an hour-and-five minute rain delay and was halted after six innings due to a travel curfew.
UM defeated the FSU by a score of 7-3 in consecutive games on Friday and Saturday.
In the game, FSU forced Miami to use seven pitchers after starter Kiki Bengochea (4-2) lasted just two-thirds of the first inning. Bengochea allowed five hits, four runs – all earned, two walks and two strikeouts in just nine batters faced. FSU’s Blair Varnes (7-1) received the win after going five innings with five hits, three runs – all earned, one walk and three strikeouts. FSU’s Chris Whidden closed out the sixth inning.
FSU jumped out in the top of the first inning with five runs off five hits. The Seminoles scored all five runs with two outs showing. Centerfielder Karl Jernigan started the scoring with a two-RBI double to right field, scoring left fielder John-Ford Griffin and first baseman Ryan Barthelemy. Shortstop Brett Groves then doubled to left field to score Jernigan. With the bases loaded, second baseman Bobby Spano singled in Groves. UM reliever Chris Sheffield walked in the fifth run, designated hitter John Halliday, in his first batter faced.
FSU added one more run in the second when third baseman Marshall McDougall walked, stole second and was knocked by Jernigan’s single to left center off Sheffield.
Catcher Blair McCaleb pushed the score to 7-0 in the third with a solo home run to left center. Sheffield the was pulled after pitching 1.1 innings with two hits, two runs – both earned, three walks and one strikeout. Later in the inning, right fielder Chris Smith knocked in two more runs with a two-run home run to right field off new UM reliever Ryan Channell. Channell then gave up another home run to Griffin to right center in the very next at bat to extend the lead to 10-0.
McDougall pushed the score to 11-0 in the fourth with a single to left center off UM reliever Luke DeBold that scored Spano from second.
Miami avoided the shutout when first baseman Danny Matienzo lead off the fourth inning with his fifth double of the season, followed by designated hitter Lale Esquivel’s 12th home run of the season. Later in the fourth, shortstop Javy Rodriguez hit a solo homerun to bring the score to 11-3.
FSU pinch-hitter Mike Futrell knocked in their Seminoles 12th run off UM reliever Alex Prendes, when he hit a sacrifice fly deep to centerfield to allow Groves to tag up from third.
McDougall extended the score to 14-3 with a two-run home run to left field in the sixth inning of UM reliever Dan Smith, also scoring Griffin.
Miami returns to action next weekend, April 21-23, at North Carolina State in Raleigh, NC. The Friday night game will be played at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, NC, home of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays AAA team. The Hurricanes return to Mark Light Stadium for a three-game series, April 28-30, against Long Beach State. For ticket information, call 1-800 GO CANES or 305-284-CANES in Dade County.
