FSU baseball will face UCF in Tallahassee Regional winner's bracket

No. 1 seed FSU baseball took care of business Friday afternoon with a 7-2 win over the No. 4 seed Stetson Hatters behind an outstanding pitching performance by Carson Dorsey. The Noles learned they will face the UCF Knights (36-19) on Saturday evening in the winner's bracket. The No. 3 seed Knights defeated the No. 2 seed Alabama Crimson Tide 8-7 in a back-and-forth affair on Friday night. UCF threw its No. 2 starter against the Crimson Tide, which means FSU will likely face their No. 1 starter Ben Vespi. Vespi has a 4.44 ERA, 71 strikeouts, allowed 75 hits, and 27 walks in 75 innings. Opposing batters hit .256, and he allowed seven home runs. He's a right-hander that usually goes five to six innings. However, he hasn't faced a potent offense like FSU all season. FSU will counter with its pitching ace, Jamie Arnold. UCF is similar to Stetson offensively in that they don't hit for much power.

They only have one guy hitting over .300 and only one guy with double-digit home runs(10. They hit .285 as a team, with a .373 on-base percentage. They strike out in 22.6 percent of their at-bats. They are not a huge threat to steal bases like Stetson, with only 52 stolen base attempts(37 steals). However, teams have had great success stealing against them, 60 for 73. This is a team Arnold should have success against since he's faced much better offenses all season in the ACC. The key as it was for Dorsey, getting ahead in the count and letting his talent take over. The FSU offense should fair well against UCF pitching, and the Noles should have an excellent shot to stay in the winner's bracket. They have their ace and a fresh bullpen ready to go after Friday's win. Saturday's game will start at 5 p.m.