An expecting pitching duel between Florida State’s Wes Mendes and Duke’s Aidan Weaver delivered.
Mendes tossed 6.2 shutout innings, matching his season-high with 12 strikeouts, as the No. 10 Seminoles defeated the Blue Devils 3-1 on Friday night.
A junior left-hander, Mendes gave up four hits and a walk on 104 pitches (63 strikes). He twice stranded runners in scoring position, including a leadoff double in the fifth, and matched the 12 strikeouts he had vs. Northern Kentucky. Mendes also had 11 strikeouts at Wake Forest, giving him double-digit strikeouts in three of his last four outings.
“It's something I really worked on hard over the offseason,” Mendes said. “That's kind of where I struggled last year, those ups and downs. It's nice to see some consistency and go out there and do my job.”
After five scoreless frames, FSU (20-5, 6-1 ACC) pushed a few runs across in the sixth. Myles Bailey led off with an end-of-the-bat double off the screen in right-center field. After just missing a home run, he quickly took third on a wild pitch and Kelvyn Paulino’s RBI single brought him home.
Later in the inning, Chase Williams had an RBI single that scored Hunter Carns.
Mendes also benefitted from some quality defense. In the seventh, Coltin Quagliano hit a ball off the screen in right field, but Jake Lambdin was slow to tag from first. Right fielder John Stuetzer threw a strike to second for the second out of the seventh.
In the sixth, Mendes (6-1) picked off Tyler Albright as Bailey threw down to second for the second out of the inning.
John Abraham gave up a pair of doubles in the eighth, with Albright’s bringing home Brooks Perez. But he shut the door in the ninth, working 2.2 innings and recording four strikeouts.
FSU is now a win away from claiming a third straight ACC series. The Seminoles picked up a sweep at Wake Forest and followed that with a series win against NC State.
Of note
Gabe Fraser entered the game as a pinch runner in the eighth and scored FSU’s third run on a wild pitch. Fraser had not played since March 3.
The Marching Chiefs sat in the right-field stands and performed throughout the game, giving Dick Howser Stadium a very fun Friday night atmosphere.
Up next
FSU plays host to Duke on Saturday at 2 p.m. (ACC Network). Left-hander Trey Beard will be on the mound for the Seminoles.
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