Mendes Leads No. 10 FSU to Victory Over Duke

Florida State used strong pitching and timely offense to beat Duke 3-1 at Dick Howser Stadium. The game took place Friday night in Tallahassee before a sold-out crowd of 6,700.

Wes Mendes helped No. 10 FSU secure a 3-1 victory against Duke. The junior left-hander struck out a career-high-tying 12 batters in 6.2 shutout innings.

Pitching performance

Mendes allowed four hits and one walk. He threw a season-high 104 pitches, one shy of his career high.

The reliever John Abraham worked 2.1 innings. He gave up one run on three hits with four strikeouts and no walks.

Offense and scoring

Florida State plated two runs in the sixth to break a scoreless game. Myles Bailey opened the inning with a double and later crossed on a Paulino single.

Chase Williams added an RBI single to make it 2-0. Duke scored in the eighth, but FSU answered with an insurance run later in the inning.

Key offensive details

Freshman designated hitter Kelvyn Paulino Jr. recorded a hit and an RBI. Sophomore catcher Hunter Carns scored the insurance run on a wild pitch.

Game stats and defense

Florida State finished with three runs on four hits. The Seminoles stranded eight runners and committed one error.

Duke managed one run on seven hits and left six men on base. The Blue Devils also had one error.

Defensive plays

Freshman right fielder John Stuetzer made a throw to retire a runner at second. Freshman third baseman Will Bavaro started a 5-3-5 double play in the eighth.

Context and records

The victory moved Florida State to 20-5 overall and 6-1 in ACC play. Duke fell to 17-11 and 4-6 in conference games.

FSU improved its all-time series edge to 85-30 against Duke. The Seminoles are now 47-11 at home versus the Blue Devils.

Next games and broadcasts

The series continues Saturday at 2 p.m. ET on the ACC Network. That game is sold out, with announcers Daron Vaught and Eduardo Perez on the call.

The Sunday finale starts at 1 p.m. and streams on ACC Network Extra and ESPN+. Saturday tickets may be found on SeatGeek. Sunday tickets are available at Filmogaz.com/Tickets or by calling 850-644-1830.

Fan information

• Student admission is free with FSUID at the right field gate.
• All stadium gates open 60 minutes before first pitch.
• Saturday is Military Saturday presented by VyStar. Sunday is Sunday Funday for kids.

Fans can listen on WFLA 100.7 FM and follow live stats at FSU.Statbroadcast.com. For more team news and updates, visit Filmogaz.com and the team’s social channels.