St. John’s pulled off one of the opening day’s biggest surprises in the NCAA Baseball Championship, erasing a three-run deficit late and rallying past Florida State 6-5 on Friday in the opening game of the Tallahassee Regional at Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium.
The Red Storm stormed back with three runs in the eighth inning before scoring the decisive run in the ninth, handing the host Seminoles a painful defeat and moving into the regional winner’s bracket.
The unlikely hero was Dylan Fitzsimmons, who entered the game in the second inning after starter Lewis Rodriguez left with an injury. Fitzsimmons delivered a career-defining performance, going 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, an RBI and two runs scored to help fuel the comeback.
Florida State appeared in control for much of the afternoon after building a 5-2 advantage through six innings behind a balanced offensive attack.
The Seminoles wasted no time energizing the home crowd when John Stuetzer launched the first pitch Florida State saw in the bottom of the first inning over the fence for a leadoff home run and a 1-0 lead.
St. John’s answered immediately in the second. Adam Agresti crushed a solo homer to even the score at 1-1, but Florida State responded right back as Gabe Fraser connected for a solo shot in the bottom half of the inning to restore the Seminoles’ advantage.
Florida State continued to apply pressure throughout the middle innings. Brayden Dowd was outstanding at the plate, finishing a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBIs and two walks. Fraser added two hits and scored twice, while Carter McCulley and Cal Fisher each collected two hits.
The Seminoles gradually stretched their lead to 5-2, highlighted by timely RBI hits from Dowd, and appeared headed toward a comfortable victory.
But the game changed dramatically in the eighth inning.
Fitzsimmons ignited the rally with a solo home run that cut Florida State’s lead to 5-3. The Red Storm kept the pressure on and took advantage of defensive miscues, scoring one run on a wild pitch and another on a passed ball to suddenly tie the game at 5-5.
With momentum fully on their side, St. John’s struck again in the ninth. Fitzsimmons reached base and eventually came around to score when Jayder Raifstanger delivered a clutch RBI single, giving the Red Storm their first lead of the game at 6-5.
Raifstanger finished 2-for-4 with the game-winning RBI, while Agresti’s early homer and Fitzsimmons’ remarkable performance off the bench proved to be the difference.
Florida State was unable to answer in the bottom of the ninth, completing a stunning collapse after leading by three runs entering the eighth inning.
The victory places St. John’s in prime position in the regional as the Red Storm advance in the winner’s bracket.
Florida State, meanwhile, faces an elimination game on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET at Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium. St. John’s will return to the same venue Saturday at 6 p.m. ET looking to move one step closer to a regional championship.
