The Sports Inquirer

Release from Florida State Athletics:

In dramatic fashion and in front of its home fans at JoAnne Graf Field, No. 9 Florida State (47-12) scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to defeat UCF (49-7) by a score of 2-1 in the winner’s bracket game of the NCAA Tallahassee Regional.

Maddie O’Brien led off the seventh inning with a solo home run to left field and Alex Powers hit a walk-off RBI triple into the right field corner to score Jessica Warren and give the Seminoles a 2-1 victory.

“Outstanding ball club – UCF,” said FSU head coach Lonni Alameda. “(Shelby) Turnier is an outstanding pitcher. We knew it would be a battle and that’s a good TV game, a good collegiate game. The belief until the very end is huge for our team and for everyone to step up off of the bench and get their jobs done was amazing.

“I can’t say enough about our experience. (Maddie O’Brien) has been in that situation so many times and for her to trust herself and trust her at-bats, to come through for the team, it was awesome.”

“I think if we do keep the one-pitch mentality, next-pitch mentality then that’s when we are going to be successful,” said Powers. “If we get caught up on the three times that I ended up not being successful for the team, then it wouldn’t have allowed me to be successful the fourth time. So just keeping that next-pitch mentality is what keeps us going.”

UCF starting pitcher Shelby Turnier (25-7) bent but would not break through six innings as she allowed FSU several chances that the Noles were unable to cash in. Florida State put multiple runners on base in each of the first, third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings, but could not scratch in a run.

Turnier was saddled with the loss, giving up two runs on four hits with a season-high nine walks and six strikeouts. She entered the game as the NCAA leader with a 0.77 ERA, and it marked just the sixth time this season that she allowed two or more earned runs in a game this year.

FSU starter Jessica Burroughs pitched very well, retiring 10 of the first 11 batters of the game with three strikeouts. Her lone blemish was a walk in the second inning before UCF took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning on a solo home run by Farrah Sullivan.

Burroughs faced the minimum over the next 2.1 innings before allowing a single to left by Kahley Novak in the sixth. She was relieved to start the seventh inning by Korina Rosario and finished with 6.0 innings pitched, one run on two hits with one walk and six strikeouts.

Rosario allowed the first two runners of the seventh inning to reach on a single and a walk, prompting Florida State to make a pitching change. Bailey Schinella entered the circle and struck out the first batter she faced. Following a stolen base, Schinella intentionally walked Samantha McCloskey to load the bases with one out.

The Seminoles got out of the inning on two groundouts to Ellie Cooper at second base to end the threat and allow the Florida State to win it in the seventh. Schinella earned the win to move to 2-1 on the season.

FSU’s Warren finished the game with four walks, setting a career high for the freshman third baseman. O’Brien drew two walks to push her season and NCAA-leading total to 70. Morgan Klaevemann extended her hitting-streak to 25 games with an infield single in the fifth inning and Cooper also posted a single in the fourth.

Florida State advances to the NCAA Regional Championship game on Sunday, May 17 at 12:00 p.m. The Seminoles’ opponent will be determined later this afternoon in games between UCF, Dartmouth and South Carolina.