Seminoles sweep Big Ten opponents, improve to 9-0 on season
Release from Florida State Sports Information:
GREENVILLE, S.C. — The Florida State baseball team combined for 24 runs Saturday, beating Michigan State 11-2 and Illinois 13-7 in the First Pitch Invitational at Fluor Field. The Seminoles have scored double-digit runs in six of nine games to begin the season and are one of six remaining undefeated teams in the nation.
James Tibbs and Cam Smith led FSU at the plate Saturday, combining for 10 hits and nine RBI. Tibbs hit his team-leading 6th home run against Illinois, while Smith hit an inside-the-park home run against Michigan State, FSU’s first since 2011.
Daniel Cantu added five hits and DeAmez Ross reached safely in six of 11 plate appearances.
Catchers McGwire Holbrook and Jaxson West also had big days for the Noles. Holbrook was 3-for-5 with a pair of RBI against the Spartans; West hit a three-run double that broke a 7-7 tie in the late game against the Illini.
Jamie Arnold improved to 3-0 with 6.0 shutout innings against Michigan State. He has not allowed an earned run in 17.0 innings this year. Ben Barrett earned his first career win at Florida State with 3.2 innings of shutout ball to close out the Illinois game.
NOTES FROM MICHIGAN STATE GAME:
- Jamie Arnold improved to 3-0 in 2024 after tossing 6.0 scoreless innings with 7 strikeouts. The sophomore has not allowed an earned run in 17.0 innings this season and has 27 strikeouts.
- Arnold has faced eight batters this season with a runner on third base. Opponents are hitting 0-for-8 with five strikeouts; Michigan State was 0-for-3 with a strikeout and two groundouts.
- Third baseman Cam Smith extended his hitting streak to 12 games with an inside-the-park home run. It was Smith’s second home run of the season and FSU’s first inside-the-park home run since James Ramsey in 2011.
- Jaime Ferrer hit his first home run of the season to start the eighth inning. He has 17 career home runs.
- Daniel Cantu and McGwire Holbrook both had three hits for Florida State.
- Marco Dinges singled in his first at-bat to extend his hitting streak to four games.
- Drew Faurot singled to extend his hitting streak to a career-best eight games.
NOTES FROM ILLINOIS GAME
- James Tibbs hit his team-high sixth home run of the season. He ranks top 30 nationally with 33 career home runs.
- Tibbs was 4-for-6 in the nightcap, tying his career-high hits. Florida State has had a player with at least three hits in all nine games to begin the season.
- Daniel Cantu singled in his first two at-bats and was 5-for-8 on the day to raise his batting average to .324. He also drew two walks against the Illini.
- Cam Smith extended his hitting streak to a career-high 13 games. He was 3-for-6 with three RBI in the game. Smith leads FSU with 19 hits on the year.
- Leadoff hitter DeAmez Ross set a career-high with three walks and reached safely in 5 of 6 plate appearances (2-for-3).
- Max Williams scored a career-high three runs. Jaxson West tied his career-high with three RBI, set earlier in the week also on a three-run double.
- Florida State joins Alabama, Louisiana Tech, UC-Irvine, Texas A&M and TCU as the last remaining undefeated teams in the nation.
UP NEXT:
Florida State will wrap up the First Pitch Invitational Sunday at 3 p.m. against Western Michigan. The game will stream live on YouTube.com/thegreenvilledrive.
Talk about this story with other die-hard Florida State fans in the FSU Baseball Forum.
