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2024 College World Series live updates: Tennessee-Florida State score, lineup and more
Florida State will get its second chance against Tennessee at the 2024 College World Series.
And if the Seminoles are successful, they’ll get a third opportunity.
FSU, which opened the tournament at Omaha with a heartbreaking and controversial loss to the top-ranked Volunteers, will play for its season for the third time in four days Wednesday. After losing to Tennessee, FSU knocked out ACC foes Virginia (7-3 on Sunday) and North Carolina (9-5 on Tuesday) to stay alive.
Meanwhile, the Vols have been idle since Sunday, when they defeated North Carolina, 6-1. That win came two days after they rallied from an 11-7 eighth-inning deficit and scored four runs in the ninth to walk-off with a 12-11 victory against the Seminoles. In that game, Tennessee’s Christian Moore became the first player since 1956 to hit for the cycle in a College World Series game.
The controversy came in the bottom of the ninth inning when Tennessee’s Blake Burke checked a swing that Florida State thought was a game-ending strike three. Instead, the third base umpire signaled that Burke held back, and the junior first baseman followed with a game-tying RBI single.
Follow along for updates and analysis from the Tennessee-Florida State game at the College World Series:
It only took three batters for Tennessee to get on the scoreboard and the Volunteers are up 3-0 after the top of the first.
Leadoff hitter Christian Moore started the game with a walk and he advanced to third base after a single from Blake Burke. The following at-bat, Billy Amick grounded into a fielder’s choice that brought Moore in. Dylan Dreiling followed it with a walk and Hunter Ensley brought in another run with a single. That would be enough for Link Jarrett as he took out starting pitcher John Abraham after five batters.
Brennen Oxford came in relief for Florida State, but he made a key mistake when he tried a pickoff attempt at first. The throw was wide, which allowed Dreiling to score from third. Now the Seminoles will have to play from behind to start the must-win game.
Link Jarrett is in his second season as the Seminoles head coach. Before that he was a two-time National Coach of the Year at Notre Dame, where he spent three years leading the Fighting Irish. Jarrett took Notre Dame to the 2022 College World Series, its third CWS bid in school history. Jarrett’s head coaching career started at UNC Greensboro, where he led the Spartans for seven seasons before taking the Notre Dame job. Jarrett is a Tallahassee native and was a five-year starter for the FSU baseball team. He met his wife at FSU, where she was a cheerleader for the Seminoles.
Tony Vitello is in his seventh season as the Vols head coach. This is the second consecutive year, and third time overall, that Vitello has led Tennessee to the College World Series. Vitello played college ball at Missouri and immediately got into coaching afterward. After assistant coaching jobs at Missouri (2003-10), TCU (2011-13) and Arkansas (2014-17), Vitello was named Tennessee’s head coach on June 7, 2017. The Vols are 292-111 overall under Vitello.
The Seminoles will turn to right-handed freshman John Abraham to keep their season alive. Abraham appeared in 24 games this season, but he only had two starts. He compiled a 5-1 record with a 4.24 ERA to go with 42 strikeouts and 29 walks in 34 innings pitched.
- Max Williams, CF
- Cam Smith, 3B
- James Tibbs III, RF
- Marco Dinges, DH
- Jaime Ferrer, LF
- Daniel Cantu, 1B
- Alex Lodise, SS
- Drew Faurot, 2B
- Jaxson West, C
First pitch for the Seminoles-Volunteers game has been moved back to 3:45 p.m. ET after the Florida-Kentucky game ran long. The Gators eliminated the Wildcats in a 15-4 rout and will play Texas A&M in Wednesday’s final game of the evening.
- Christian Moore, 2B
- Blake Burke, 1B
- Billy Amick, 3B
- Dylan Dreiling, LF
- Hunter Ensley, DH
- Kavares Tears, CF
- Dean Curley, SS
- Reese Chapman, RF
- Cal Stark, C
Junior second baseman Christian Moore stole the headlines Friday against Florida State when he became the second player ever to hit for the cycle at the College World Series. The first — and last — player to do it was Minnesota’s Jerry Kindall in 1956. Moore’s .384 batting average and .814 slugging percentage is a team high for players with at least 35 at-bats, and he leads the team with 33 homers and 72 RBI.
Senior southpaw Zander Sechrist is getting the start for the Vols. Sechrist’s 17 starts at the second most on the team, and he’s gone 4-1 with a 3.26 ERA. He has 66 strikeouts and 14 walks in 66 ⅓ innings pitched.
The Volunteers will be sporting their orange jersey with “Vols” scripted in white across the front in what the team’s social media account calls “The finest shade of Orange you’ll ever see.” The orange tops go with orange caps and gray pants.
Tennessee is favored to win Wednesday’s game, according to the BetMGM college baseball odds. Looking to wager? Check out the best mobile sports betting apps offering 2024 sports betting promos.
Odds listed as of Wednesday afternoon.
- Spread: Tennessee (-1.5)
- Moneyline: Tennessee (-200); Florida State (+150)
- O/U: 12.5
Elimination games will be denoted with an asterisk (*). Away teams listed first. All times Eastern.
Wednesday, June 19
- Game 10: Florida 15, Kentucky 4 (Kentucky eliminated)
- Game 11: Florida State vs. Tennessee, 3 p.m. ET (Elimination game for Florida State)
- Game 12: Florida vs. Texas A&M, 7 p.m. (Elimination game for Florida)
Thursday, June 20
Times TBD.
- Bracket 1 final: Only necessary if Florida State beats Tennessee on Wednesday
- Bracket 2 final: Only necessary if Kentucky/Florida winner beats Texas A&M on Wednesday
Men’s College World Series Finals
Best-of-three series between Bracket 1 winner and Bracket 2 winner.
- Game 1: Saturday, June 22, 7:30 p.m.
- Game 2: Sunday, June 23, 2 p.m.
- Game 3 (if necessary): Monday, June 24, 7 p.m.
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