FSU baseball: Conor Grady and offense dominate UNC to clinch series win

FSU baseball (15-9, 10-8 ACC) got a dominant effort from Conor Grady, and the offense jumped on UNC early to clinch the series with an 8-0 shutout win.

Grady went seven innings and struck out 10 while allowing three hits and zero walks. Grady retired the final 16 batters faced and were one strikeout shy of his career-high.

It was a much-needed effort with the Noles using several bullpen arms in Saturday’s win.

FSU wasted no time jumping on the Tarheels early for the second day in a row, which was a good see. Those early runs seemed to take the life out of UNC, and Grady cruised from that point.

Elijah Cabell continues to smash pitches since cutting his hair, and his second home run of the series would have been enough for Conor Grady in the first inning.

However, the Noles continued to pour it on with runs in the second, fourth, and fifth innings. The FSU offense finished with only six hits but also took advantage of nine walks by UNC pitchers.

Matheu Nelson had an RBI double.

Despite scoring eight runs, the Noles still left seven runners on base so they left scoring opportunities on the table.

The defense was solid for the second consecutive day after a tough first game in the series. FSU can compete with anyone when they get good pitching, solid defense, and swing the bats well.

Parting Thoughts

I wrote before the series the Noles needed to sweep or win the series. I would have preferred the sweep, but coming back to win the final two games were big for this ball club.

It was good to see Nander De Sedas and Logan Lacey return to the lineup after rehabbing from injuries.

The Noles will return to action Tuesday night against Jacksonville before traveling to take on No. 5 ranked Louisville.