{"id":192950,"date":"2026-03-16T01:36:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T01:36:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/192950\/"},"modified":"2026-03-16T01:36:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T01:36:13","slug":"no-20-florida-state-sweeps-no-12-wake-forest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/192950\/","title":{"rendered":"No. 20 Florida State Sweeps No. 12 Wake Forest"},"content":{"rendered":"

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. \u2013 The No. 20 Florida State baseball team swept No. 12 Wake Forest with a 12-6 win on Sunday afternoon at David F. Couch Ballpark in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
\n\u00a0
\nThe Seminoles (16-3, 3-0 ACC) open conference play with a three-game sweep for the third consecutive season, and the sweep in the team’s first road ACC series is their first since beginning the 2012 conference slate with a 3-0 mark at Duke. The series at the Demon Deacons (15-5, 3-3 ACC) came after FSU won Friday’s opener 10-0<\/a> in seven innings and Saturday’s contest by a 2-0<\/a> margin for back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 2013 and consecutive shutouts in ACC action for the first time since 2000.
\n\u00a0
\nFlorida State has swept all four of its weekend series to begin the season. Seven of the team’s next eight will now be played at home.<\/p>\n

The Seminoles earned their first series win against Wake Forest since 2022, their first sweep of the Demon Deacons since 2013 and first sweep on the road in the series since 2010. Florida State is now 101-40 all-time against Wake and 35-16 in Winston-Salem.

\n\u00a0

\nFSU hit 10 home runs in the series at Wake, with four coming in Sunday’s finale. Redshirt senior second baseman Eli Putnam<\/a> homered in the first inning, his third of the weekend to give FSU a 2-0 lead, and junior center fielder Brayden Dowd<\/a> hit a second-inning longball to make it 4-1 in the second, his second homer of the series. Sophomore first baseman Myles Bailey<\/a> made it three-for-three with a third-inning blast to extend the lead to 5-1, also his second home run of the weekend. After a three-run fourth without a home run, and following two Wake runs in the seventh, freshman left fielder John Stuetzer<\/a> hit a grand slam in the eighth to push the lead to 12-3. It was his second career home run and first grand slam, and his first hit of the series.

\n\u00a0

\nFreshman designated hitter Kelvyn Paulino Jr.<\/a> had three of the Seminoles’ 11 hits. Stuetzer was one of three players with multiple RBI and he also paced the team with three runs scored.

\n\u00a0

\nOn the mound, junior right-handed starter Bryson Moore<\/a> earned the win to improve to 3-0 on the season. In 5.2 innings, he held Wake Forest to one run on four hits with a season-high-tying seven strikeouts and three walks. Junior right-hander Chris Knier<\/a> pitched the final 1.2 innings and held WF to one run on two hits with three strikeouts and no walks.

\n\u00a0

\nFSU’s 12 runs came on 11 hits with one error and three runners left on. Wake scored its six runs on nine hits with an error and 10 runners stranded.

\n\u00a0

\nThe Seminoles took a 2-0 lead in the first inning, as Putnam’s home run got the scoring started and freshman designated hitter Kelvyn Paulino Jr.<\/a> singled in Bailey with two outs.

\n\u00a0

\nWake Forest answered with a leadoff home run in the bottom half to make it 2-1. That was the Demon Deacons’ first run of the series after 16 shutout innings to begin the weekend.

\n\u00a0

\nBrayden Dowd<\/a> got the run back and one more with a two-run, two-out home run in the second to extend the FSU lead to 4-1. His two-run shot over the left-center field wall scored Stuetzer. Moore followed with a 1-2-3 bottom of the second.

\n\u00a0

\nFlorida State made it three consecutive innings with a home run thanks to Bailey’s leadoff blast to right in the third to make it 5-1. Moore then got a strikeout and groundout to leave two on.

\n\u00a0

\nThree more runs in the fourth made it 8-1 on just one hit, a leadoff single. Two walks loaded the bases and Bailey drove in the first run with an RBI groundout. A wild pitch then scored two runs.

\n\u00a0

\nMoore again left two on in the bottom half, as a flyout and strikeout ended the threat. In the fifth, he retired the side in order. The sixth saw Moore get the first out before a single, fielder’s choice and a walk put two on with two outs. Sophomore right-hander Cade O’Leary<\/a> came in and got a strikeout to end the inning and strand the bases loaded.

\n\u00a0

\nThe Demon Deacons hit a home run of their own in the seventh, as a two-run shot made it 8-3. Redshirt junior left-hander Kevin Mebil<\/a> came in and got three outs to limit the damage.

\n\u00a0

\nStuetzer’s grand slam in the eighth brought it to 12-3. The one-out longball to right came after back-to-back singles and a hit-by-pitch. Wake answered with two in the bottom of the eighth to make it 12-5, with an RBI single and sac fly.

\n\u00a0

\nIn the ninth, a solo home run proved to be the final run of the series for the 12-6 final.

\n\u00a0

\nFSU returns home for four games, beginning against Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday, March 17, at 6 p.m. ET, before a weekend series against NC State from March 20-22. Tickets are available at Seminoles.com\/Tickets<\/a>.

\n\u00a0

\nFor more information on Florida State baseball, check Seminoles.com for the latest news and scheduling information, and keep up with the team on social media through Twitter\/X<\/a> and Facebook<\/a> (@FSUBaseball) & Instagram<\/a> (@NoleBaseball).

\n\u00a0<\/p>\n