College World Series ends with defeat against Florida State
North Carolina’s baseball season ended Tuesday with a 9-5 loss to Florida State in the College World Series elimination game.
The Tar Heels’ offense started slowly, while Florida State took an early 3-1 lead. The momentum shifted in the fifth inning, when UNC immediately answered a four-run Seminoles with a four-run homer of its own, keeping the lead at two runs. Although the offense finally got going, the Heels were never able to take the lead.
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Vance Honeycutt was once again the Tar Heels’ offensive player, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs. Jackson Van De Brake also had a solid day, going 2-for-4 with an RBI. Jaxson West was the catalyst for Florida State out of the ninth hole, going 4-for-5 with two RBIs and a home run.
Here are more observations from UNC’s season-ending loss to Florida State in the College World Series:
The starting pitcher makes the early difference
UNC’s arms struggled in the early going. Aidan Haugh started but only played 2⅓ innings after allowing one run in the second inning and loading the bases with two walks and a hit-by-pitch in the third. Matthew Matthijs came in as a reliever but brought home one run and was replaced after just five pitches in favor of Dalton Pence.
Pence also played 2.13 innings, but conceded four earned runs on six hits in the fifth inning, giving Florida State a 7-1 lead.
Florida State, on the other hand, got off to a brilliant start with Andrew Armstrong, who allowed five hits in 4⅓ innings and left the game with a six-run lead. The Tar Heels’ offense couldn’t do anything against Armstrong, but really got going when the Seminoles used their bullpen.
Honeycutt provides sparks
Trailing by six in the fifth inning, UNC got another game-winning hit from leadoff hitter Vance Honeycutt. After Armstrong moved runners to first and second base, Florida State singled to Conner Whittaker and Honeycutt was next. Honeycutt sent Whittaker’s third pitch over the left outfield wall for a three-run home run that shifted the momentum in the Heels’ favor for the first time.
Jackson Van De Brake kept the momentum going with an RBI single to make it 7-5. It seemed like the Seminoles had the game tied after their fourth hit in the top of the third, but Honeycutt’s heroics kept the contest exciting. He went 3-for-5 on the day with a home run, a double and three RBIs. In the tournament, Honeycutt accounted for 16 of the Tar Heels’ 43 total runs, 38% of their offensive output. His six tournament home runs are more than any other player to date.
Attack fails in the last frames
After a wild fifth inning in which both teams scored four runs each, neither team managed to score a run in the next three innings. UNC’s Cameron Padgett came into the game with the bases loaded in the sixth inning and managed to keep the Seminoles from scoring. Florida State’s Connor Hults struck out the Tar Heels in the bottom half of the sixth inning.
In the seventh inning, Honeycutt reached base on a single, but was intercepted while attempting to steal second base. Van De Brake reached base on a double in the eighth inning and got to third base, but was left helpless.
Florida State was able to secure some ground in the final inning. The Seminoles opened the ninth inning with back-to-back solo home runs by West and Max Williams to extend their lead to four. UNC was again unable to score in the ninth inning, making the final score 9-5.