FSU baseball: 3 keys to defeating North Carolina in MCWS

FSU baseball looks to keep its MCWS hopes alive in an elimination game on Tuesday afternoon against ACC regular season champion North Carolina. The Noles staved off elimination by beating the Virginia Cavaliers on Sunday. North Carolina lost to Tennessee Sunday night. The two ACC foes didn't face one another in the regular season or ACC Baseball Championships in Charlotte. FSU opened as -125 betting favorites and appeared to be the more complete team over the last week. North Carolina has struggled to score runs in three MCWS games, putting up good offensive numbers all season. The Noles have put up outstanding offensive numbers all season, which has continued in the postseason. They have only had one game where they scored fewer than seven runs. They'll need that trend to continue as FSU will likely take a committee approach on the mound on Tuesday. Here are my three keys to defeating the Tarheels and advancing to face Tennessee again on Wednesday:

James Tibbs must join the offensive production

The top of the FSU lineup has done much damage in the first two MCWS games. However, ACC Player of the Year James Tibbs hasn't contributed much to it. Tibbs is 1-8 with two runs scored, an RBI, two walks, and four strikeouts in the first two MCWS games. Tibbs struggled in game one but had a better approach in game two, which allowed Marco Dinges and Jaime Ferrer to do a ton of damage behind him. If teams continue to pitch around him, he'll need to continue to take the walks and not expand the strike zone so those guys behind can continue to rake. However, if he gets pitches in the strike zone, FSU will need him to capitalize like he's done nearly all season. Obviously, the rest of the FSU lineup must continue to swing the bat well.

FSU Needs To Get Off To A Fast Start

As mentioned, FSU will likely go with a pitcher-by-committee approach. There will be guys who haven't pitched much this postseason on the mound, and getting an early lead may help alleviate some initial pressure. North Carolina has struggled to score runs in the MCWS, scoring six in their last three games. If FSU can build an early lead, North Carolina may feel pressure to score and start pressing at the plate. North Carolina batters strike out 24 percent of their at-bats, and if FSU pitchers can get them to chase pitches out of the zone? That would be huge for pitchers who may struggle to stay in the strike zone because they haven't pitched much lately and have struggled with throwing strikes consistently. On the flipside, if FSU pitchers can get through the first couple of innings without allowing any damage, that would be huge.

FSU Pitchers Gotta Avoid Walks and Mistakes

This area concerns me the most going into this game. FSU used the pitcher-by-committee approach in most of its midweek games this year with great success. They faced good offenses like Florida and beat them three times. However, the FSU offense exploded in all three games and took pressure off(see point #2). However, how will these guys react in this environment with the season on the line? Can they avoid the leadoff walks, the walks with two-outs, hitting batters in pitcher counts? We've seen it cost the Noles a few times this season. The Tennessee rally in the bottom of the ninth? A one-out walk started it all. I don't mind getting beat if the opposing team is tearing the cover off the ball. However, walks or making mistakes in pitcher counts is a no-no. If FSU pitchers can do this for the majority of the game? I like their chances to survive and advance.

The game will begin at 2 p.m. on Tuesday and will air on ESPN.