Troy Blanks No. 20 Florida State to Even Series

Saturday, May 1

Tallahassee, Fla.

1 p.m.

Troy University

21-20

Florida State

22-16

Troy

Florida State

Troy Blanks No. 20 Florida State to Even Series

5/1/2021 6:29:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Troy secured its first-ever road win against Florida State by shutting out the No. 20 Seminoles on a hot afternoon inside Dick Howser Stadium. Orlando Ortiz tossed six scoreless innings as the Trojans evened the series with a 3-0 victory, their first win against Florida State since 1980.

Nic Nolan broke up a perfect game and the scoreless tie in the sixth inning with a solo home run, a bomb that went over the Seminole bullpen in left field and exited the stadium. Ortiz (4-4) struck out six and prompted two double plays as part of his outing.

Logan Cerny doubled twice and navigated the basepaths effectively to cross home twice in the later stages of the game. With the Seminole infield playing in to try and prevent a run, Caleb Bartolero smacked a hard-hit ball towards the second baseman, forcing an error and plating Troy's second run of the contest. Cerny added an insurance run in the top of the ninth when he raced home from third on a wild pitch.

Lance Johnson and Max Newton were each effective in their relief outings, but it was Marquez Oates who earned the save, his fourth of the season, with two strikeouts in 1.1 innings. Oates entered the ballgame with two Seminoles on base in the eighth and slammed the door shut with a swing-and-miss strikeout.

Florida State was aggressive on the basepaths throughout the game, but the Trojan arms were able to work around trouble when they had to. The Seminoles left 10 runners stranded and finished the contest 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position, most notably when Rigsby Mosley made a catch at the wall with the bases loaded to end the third inning.

Bryce Hubbart (5-3) wore the loss despite striking out 12 and carrying a perfect game into the sixth inning.

Quotable – Head Coach Mark Smartt
"That was a great win today by our team. We were outstanding on the mound; Orlando was terrific in six innings of shutout baseball. [Orlando] made key pitches when he had to and maintained his composure in some tough spots. Lance, Max and Marquez were fantastic in their roles. I thought Nic Nolan really jolted our team awake with his homer in the sixth. I thought the key inning in the game was in the bottom of the sixth; to put up a zero right after we scored was important. I'm really proud of our players and I'm happy for them. It's a big road win against a top 20 team."

Sound Smartt With Your Friends
Troy recorded its first win over Florida State since 1980 and its first-ever road win against the Seminoles.

Notable

Troy was the first non-ACC opponent to shutout Florida State since Stetson in 2019.
The Trojans beat a ranked opponent for the first time since 2019 and for the ninth time under Mark Smartt.
The Troy pitching staff secured its fifth shutout of the season and its fourth in the last 10 games.
Logan Cerny scored twice and doubled twice in the win. The center fielder now has 56 career extra-base hits and has back-to-back multi-hit performances against the Seminoles.
Nic Nolan homered for his second time as a Trojan. The solo shot came in the sixth inning and broke up a perfect game.
The victory marked the first time since 2019 vs. Central Michigan that Troy won a game with fewer than four hits. It's Troy's third win of the season when being out hit by the opponent.

Up Next
Troy and No. 20 Florida State square off in the rubber match Sunday at noon (CT).