Tennessee Baseball Florida State Score, Updates, College World Series Semifinal | Rocky Top Insider

SCORE: Tennessee 2, Florida State 0 | T1

***SCROLL DOWN FOR LIVE AT-BAT BY AT-BAT FEED***

Top-ranked Tennessee baseball (57-12, 22-8 SEC) is set to battle No. 8 seed Florida State Seminoles (49-16, 17-12 ACC) Wednesday in Omaha, Nebraska in the College World Series.

First pitch at Charles Schwab Field is set for 3:45 p.m. ET on ESPN.

First pitch was initially scheduled for 2 p.m. ET then pushed back to 3 p.m. ET due to bad weather on Tuesday that delayed Florida-Kentucky. Florida-Kentucky then lasted longer than expected, pushing first pitch back to 3:45 p.m. ET.

Tennessee will advance to the College World Series Finals with a win over the Seminoles on Wednesday. If the Vols lose to Florida State, the Vols and ‘Noles will play for a third time in Omaha on Thursday in an elimination game with a spot in the College World Series Finals on the line.

This will be the second time the two sides have squared off in Omaha. The Vols beat the Seminoles in an instant classic last Friday night in their CWS opener. The Vols plated four runs in the bottom of the ninth, with Dylan Dreiling hitting a walk-off RBI double to complete the comeback.

Tennessee followed up its win over Florida State with a dominant 6-1 win over North Carolina on Sunday. Florida State has since handled Virginia and North Carolina easily to make it to the CWS Semifinals.

RECAP: Strong Pitching Pushes Tennessee Baseball Past North Carolina In CWS

WINNING: Tennessee Baseball’s Win Over North Carolina Different But Not Surprising

Tennessee is the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years. The Vols swept through the Knoxville Regional and won two of three games against Evansville in the Knoxville Super Regional.

Florida State is the No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Seminoles haven’t lost a game since the ACC Tournament Championship against Duke. The Noles swept their Regional, beating Stetson once and UCF twice, before sweeping UConn 2-0 in the Tallahassee Super.

THE CATCH: Tennessee’s Hunter Ensley Makes Face-Planting Wall Catch During College World Series

STORY: ‘She’s Of Our Cloth’: Meet Beth Schwartz, The Woman Fueling Tennessee Baseball

Tennessee entered the NCAA Tournament matchup coming off an SEC Tournament championship victory to achieve its second tournament title in three years.

While Florida State lost in the ACC Tournament championship game, the Noles posted an impressive 17-12 conference record in an incredibly difficult league. Highlights of Florida State’s season include series wins over Duke and fellow Omaha team NC State along with a midweek win over another Omaha team, Florida.

GESTURE: Tony Vitello Sends Northern Kentucky Manager ‘Mav’ NCAA Regional Banners

TRANSCRIPT: Everything Tennessee HC Tony Vitello Said Before Florida State Rematch

For all of RTI’s baseball coverage so far this season, including the RTI staff’s prediction for Tennessee vs. FSU round two, click here.

For the latest RTI Press Pass baseball podcast, click here. For instant reactions of each of Tennessee’s Omaha wins, click here and here.

More From RTI: Tennessee Baseball vs. Florida State In CWS Semifinals: How To Watch, Complete Preview

VIDEO: Tony Vitello, Cal Stark, Nate Snead Preview College World Series Semifinal Matchup

Injury Note

-Sophomore RHP AJ Russell is shut down for the remainder of the season and thus is inactive for the College World Series. Russell underwent Tommy John surgery on Tuesday to repair his UCL. However, Russell is with the team in Omaha.

-RS-Jr. centerfielder Hunter Ensley is nursing a lower-body injury after crashing hard into the wall to make a catch-of-the-year candidate Sunday against UNC. Ensley is IN the lineup but not starting defensively, serving as the DH.

OPTIMISM: Tennessee’s Record Against The Remaining College World Series Teams Proves Optimistic

Tennessee is minus money to win the College World Series, and rightfully so, as the Vols have been the best team all year and have looked impressive so far in Omaha. A win over Florida State on Wednesday would put them in the CWS Finals, and the Vols would likely be able to completely reset their pitching for the weekend series.

Lineups, pitching matchup and additional pre-game notes are below, followed by the LIVE at-bat by at-bat game thread.

Starting Lineups

TENNESSEE STARTING NINE: 

2B Christian Moore (R)

1B Blake Burke (L)

3B Billy Amick (R)

LF Dylan Dreiling (L)

DH Hunter Ensley (R)

CF Kavares Tears (L)

SS Dean Curley (R)

RF Reese Chapman (L)

C Cal Stark (R)

Lineup Notes:

• Ensley moves to DH as he continues to nurse a lower-body injury he sustained when crashing into the wall Sunday against North Carolina.
• Tears moves to center with Ensley at DH. Chapman gets the nod in right field.
• Order the same as it’s been.

FLORIDA STATE STARTING NINE: 

CF Max Williams (L)

3B Cam Smith (R)

RF James Tibbs III (L)

DH Marco Dinges (R)

LF Jaime Ferrer (R)

1B Daniel Cantu (L)

SS Alex Lodise (R)

2B Drew Faurot (S)

C Jaxson West (L)

Pitching Matchup:

Vols Sr. LHP Zander Sechrist (4-1, 3.26 ERA, 18 app., 17 starts, 66.1 IP, 65 H, 28 R, 24 ER, 14 BB, 66 K, 14 XBH, .255 opp. batting avg., 1.19 WHIP)

vs.

Seminoles Fr. RHP John Abraham (5-1, 4.24 ERA, 24 app., 2 starts, 1 SV, 34.0 IP, 18 H, 16 R, 16 ER, 29 BB, 21 K, 9 XBH, .157 opp. batting avg., 1.38 WHIP)

Pitching notes:

• Sechrist continues to start in a game three setting. No surprise Tennessee is throwing its best punch on the mound today.
• Abraham hasn’t pitched in two-and-a-half weeks and has only started two games. His longest outing is 3.2 innings and his highest pitch count is 55 this season. Likely a bullpen game for FSU as they’re rolling the dice, hoping to start ace Jamie Arnold in a possible Thursday game vs. Tennessee.
  • Abraham clearly has struggled with command a bit this year but doesn’t give up a lot of hits.

Uniforms

Tennessee: Orange tops, grey bottoms

Florida State: All whites with maroon caps

*NOTES*

• There is NO Run-Rule in NCAA Tournament play.
• Tennessee is the AWAY team because it has been the away team LESS than Florida State has so far in Omaha. This is the first time the Vols have been the away team so far in the 2024 CWS.

1st Inning: 

T1

-Christian Moore works a leadoff walk.

-Blake Burke ropes a single through the right side. Moore advances to third.

-Billy Amick reaches on an RBI fielder’s choice to 3B as Burke is out at second, 5-4. Moore scores.

-Dylan Dreiling works a walk. Amick advances to second.

-Hunter Ensley rips an RBI single to LF to score Amick. Dreiling advances to second.

• First pitch of the at-bat smoked by Ensley.

B1

Score: Vols 2, Seminoles 0

2nd Inning: 

T2

B2

Score: Vols , Seminoles

3rd Inning: 

T3

B3

Score: Vols , Seminoles

4th Inning: 

T4

B4

Score: Vols , Seminoles

5th Inning: 

T5

B5

Score: Vols , Seminoles

6th Inning: 

T6

B6

Score: Vols , Seminoles

7th Inning: 

T7

B7

Score: Vols , Seminoles

8th Inning: 

T8

B8

Score: Vols , Seminoles

9th Inning: 

T9

B9

Score: Vols , Seminoles

FINAL: Tennessee Vols __, Florida State Seminoles __