Florida State’s 19-game winning streak in the regional round came to an abrupt ending on Friday night as the Seminoles opened the NCAA Tournament with a 7-0 loss to Georgia Southern. FSU had no answer for Eagles’ starting pitcher Sam Howard, who threw a complete game, two-hit shutout.
Howard fanned 10 Florida State hitters in the process, allowing hits to only D.J. Stewart and Jose Brizuela. Meanwhile, five different Florida State hurlers combined to allow 16 hits in the loss. 9-hitter Dalton Busby was a perfect 3-for-3 at the dish for Georgia Southern with a pair of RBIs while every Eagle in the lineup had at least one hit.
To reach the Super Regionals for a seventh straight season, Florida State will need to win four straight games. The last time the Seminoles were able to do so was 2008 when coincidentally, FSU opened the NCAA Tournament with a 7-0 loss. In that case, the opponent was Bucknell.
Florida State will have a quick turnaround to try to keep its season alive as the Seminoles face Alabama in an elimination game on Saturday afternoon. Alabama was also blanked on Friday in a 1-0 loss to Kennesaw State. Kennesaw State will face Georgia Southern later in the afternoon on Saturday as the winner of the contest will be just a single victory shy of a berth in the Super Regionals.
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