It looked like Florida St.’s two runs in the seventh and one run in the eighth would be superfluous. Bumping a 5-2 lead to an 8-2 lead could have been unnecessary, but on Monday afternoon, those runs were key. Trailing by six runs going into the ninth inning of an elimination game in the College World Series, the Gators put together a rally to make things interesting.
2010 College World Series: Florida St Eliminates Florida With 8-5 Win
A bases loaded double by Preston Tucker brought home three runs and turned a six run lead into a three run lead. Following a hit by pitch, Mat Zunino came to the plate as the tying run with just one out, but a line drive was snagged at shortstop and flipped it to second base to complete the double play for the game’s final out.
The hero of the game came on the mound, a place that the Seminoles have struggled. Brian Busch held the Gators to just two runs in 5.1 innings to pick up the win for the Seminoles. He turned the ball over to the bullpen and while they had some ninth inning issues, Geoff Parker’s 2.1 scoreless innings loomed large.
It was the top of the Florida St. lineup that did the job for the Seminoles. The top six men in the line up combined for 12 hits and all eight RBI for the Seminoles, led by Mike McGee’s four driven in. McGee hit a home run and picked up a pair of hits and runs scored to go with his four RBI, while Tyler Holt went 3-4 with three runs, two RBI and a home run.
For all the joy in the Seminole dugout, there was as much heartbreak in the Florida dugout, where they saw their season come to an end. The first team eliminated from the 2010 College World Series, the Gators will look to next season to return to Omaha after getting this this season with an incredibly young team. Meanwhile, the Seminoles are still alive and will face the loser of tonight’s UCLA vs. TCU game in an elimination game on Wednesday.
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