{"id":209399,"date":"2026-03-28T08:28:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T08:28:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/209399\/"},"modified":"2026-03-28T08:28:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T08:28:11","slug":"no-10-florida-state-tops-duke-3-1-in-series-opener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/209399\/","title":{"rendered":"No. 10 Florida State Tops Duke, 3-1, in Series Opener"},"content":{"rendered":"

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Aidan Weaver<\/a>\u00a0punched out a career-high 11and threw 5.2 innings of two-run ball, but Duke dropped the series opener at No. 10 Florida State, 3-1, on Friday at Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Weaver and FSU starter Wes Mendes (6-1) matched each other nearly pitch for pitch with Mendes going 6.2 and scattering four hits with a walk and 12 whiffs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Seminoles struck for two in the bottom of the sixth on a pair of RBI singles and added another on a wild pitch in the eighth while Duke received a\u00a0Tyler Albright<\/a>\u00a0RBI double in the eighth but could not force a tie.\u00a0<\/p>\n

HOW IT HAPPENED
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\n\tNeither team scored in the first inning, with Duke starter\u00a0Aidan Weaver<\/a>\u00a0punching out two straight to end the bottom half of the first after the leadoff batter reached third on a walk, stolen base and groundout.\u00a0
\n\tWeaver continued the escapes in the next inning after a leadoff double and walk put two on with nobody out. The senior punched out the next three batters, all on swinging strikes, to move the game to the third frame.\u00a0
\n\tBrooks Perez<\/a>\u00a0gave Duke its first hit of the afternoon, with a two-out triple, but the game moved to the home half still scoreless. A throwing error allowed Florida State to reach third base with one out in the bottom of the third. Weaver continued to rack up the strikeouts, with two more, to move the scoreless game to the fourth.\u00a0
\n\tJake Lambdin<\/a>\u00a0led off the top of the fifth with a ground-rule double, his 13th two-bagger of the season, but Wes Mendes got the three outs required to send bring Florida State back to bat.\u00a0
\n\tDuke threatened again in the top of the sixth but was held off the board. With two outs,\u00a0RJ Hamilton<\/a>\u00a0singled and advanced to second on a wild pitch.\u00a0Kaden Smith<\/a>\u00a0was then hit by a pitch, but a fielder’s choice ended the threat.\u00a0
\n\tAfter the hold, the Seminoles broke through with a pair of runs for a 2-0 lead. Myles Bailey led off with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch. A Kelvyn Paulino single plated Bailey. After a fielder’s choice and strikeout, Chase Williams brought in another with a single up the middle. A walk chased Weaver, but Marcello Mastorianni limited the damage with a lineout to left.\u00a0
\n\tDuke answered in the eighth to make it a 2-1 game. Perez and\u00a0Tyler Albright<\/a>\u00a0hit consecutive doubles to start the frame. A strikeout and double play groundout kept it a one-run affair.\u00a0
\n\tThe Seminoles added another insurance run in the bottom of the eighth for a 3-1 contest. After back-to-back walks started the inning, a sacrifice bunt and strikeout left runners on second and third with two outs. A wild pitch brought in the third run before a strikeout ended the frame.\u00a0
\n\tDuke got a Lambdin one-out single and he advanced to second on a throwing error but could go no further as FSU ended the game with a groundout and strikeout.
\n\tAfter Weaver,\u00a0Mastorianni went 1.1 innings and allowed one run on two walks and two strikeouts. Roman DiGiacomo<\/a>\u00a0threw the final inning, fanning two Seminoles.\u00a0
\n\tFlorida State got 6.2 innings from Mendes and 2.1 from John Abraham, who earned his third save by throwing 2.1 frames and limiting Duke to one run on three hits to go with four strikeouts.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

UP NEXT<\/p>\n


\n\tDuke (17-11, 4-6 ACC) and Florida State (20-5, 6-1 ACC) play the second game of the weekend at 2 p.m., live on ACC Network. <\/p>\n

For more information on Duke baseball, follow the Blue Devils on\u00a0Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0by searching for “DukeBASE”.<\/p>\n

#GoDuke<\/p>\n

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