The Saints (20-22) drop their first-ever contest against an NCAA Division I school as they battled the storied Seminole program and Atlantic Coast Conference favorite who improved to 30-7 on the season.
North Georgia appeared to be off on the right foot when Jordan Erisman led off the top of the first inning, worked a full count and belted a long fly ball to left, but Jose Brizuela tracked it down shy of the wall for a noisy first out of the ballgame.
Florida State took full advantage of their opportunities in the bottom of the first inning when James Ramsey stepped to the plate with a pair of runners on and lined a ball just under the outstretched glove of Matthew Black at first base that trickled into the corner and scored two runs. What turned into a triple for Ramsey was his fifth of the season, while picking up RBI's 34 and 35.
After a three spot in the first inning, the Seminoles adding a single run in the second frame courtesy of a solo shot off the bat of Justin Gonzalez who belted the second pitch he saw to the parking lot in left field. The Long ball for Gonzalez was his third of the season.
Florida State was at it again in the fifth inning, plating two more insurance runs to extend their lead to 6-0. Ramsey recorded his third RBI of the game in the inning when he sent a seeing eye single through the right side to plate Devon Travis.
Jacob Beauchamp (4-2) suffered the loss for the Saints in 3.0 innings of work. The freshman allowed four runs on just three hits while striking out one. Blake Hobby followed and tossed a pair of frames and was tagged for two runs on a trio of hits. Phillip Taylor and Reese Patton combined to hold the Seminole offense scoreless over the final 3.0 innings, while each striking out a batter.
North Georgia managed three hits in the games, coming off the bats of Derek Hooper in the first, Black in the second and Andrew Gordon in the sixth. The Saints never had a runner reach second base however, as Hooper was caught stealing, and Black was erased on a double play.
The Saints return to Peach Belt Conference action over the weekend, welcoming Augusta State University to town for a three-game series. A doubleheader is scheduled for Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m., followed by a single game on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Bob Stein Stadium.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2012/4/247696