Syracuse entered the bottom of the first inning down 4-0. After Florida State took an early 1-0 lead, SU starter Alexa Romero surrendered a three-run home run to deep right field. SU looked outmatched early against the No. 2 team in the country.

But SU responded. Five hits, a walk and a wild pitch tied the game at four. The Orange would keep competing even when falling behind by large deficits.

“We were seeing the ball well today,” Orange first baseman Sydney O’Hara said.

Syracuse (19-13, 3-7 Atlantic Coast) lost to No. 2 Florida State (36-1-1, 16-0), 18-9 on Saturday afternoon, as the Seminoles blasted five home runs. But despite the lopsided score, SU’s offense showed reasons for optimism. The nine runs were tied for the third-most in a game this year, and they came on a season-high 15 hits.

“If we would’ve said we’d score nine runs,” head coach Mike Bosch said, “We would’ve probably signed up for that and thought we’d have a great chance to win.”

FSU’s starter, Meghan King, had given up just 15 runs all season and no other team has registered more than seven hits against her. The redshirt sophomore entered this Saturday’s game with a 0.75 ERA and a record of 16-0. Florida State, as a team, has 19 shutouts in 38 games.

Sammy Fernandez led off the bottom of the first with a line drive to left field and then Alicia Hansen singled by beating out the throw on a three-foot dribbler. After a wild pitch, a Sydney O’Hara single, a walk and Rachel Burkhardt single, Hannah Dossett ripped a two-run double to tie the game at four with runners on second and third. The inning ended with the two runners stranded, but Syracuse bounced back.

A few relatively uneventful innings ended when SU took a beating in the fourth.The Seminoles put up seven runs in the frame, and again, hope looked lost.

But the Orange continued to rack up runs.

Alyssa Dewes, who has struggled all season, doubled on a line drive to deep center field. After Fernandez advanced Dewes on a groundout, Hansen drove Dewes in on a single. O’Hara followed Hansen by hitting a single to deep right field, but when the right fielder, Carsyn Gordon, tried to field the ball, it bounced off of her leg for an error. O’Hara advanced to third on the error and Hansen scored.

With O’Hara on third, Faith Cain reached first on another FSU error, and O’Hara came in to score. Still with only one out, SU quickly scored three runs and had a runner on base. After a Bryce Holmgren walk and a Rachel Burkhardt strikeout, Dossett reached on a fielder’s choice, but a botched catch sent Cain home. But Cain was thrown out by a mile to end the inning at 12-7, leaving two runners on base and nearing the top of the lineup.

FSU added two more runs in the fifth, but couldn’t separate from the Orange. In the bottom of the fifth Hansen sent a ball deep to center field. FSU’s center fielder, Morgan Klaevemann climbed the wall to make a catch, but Hansen’s ball was too far, landing just in front of the Seminole team bus.

The sophomore rounded the bases, arms out, mimicking an airplane. The team ran out to greet her at home plate, all players bouncing up and down. There was still life in the game.

“I don’t hit a lot of home runs,” Hansen said, “so I just did what came to mind.”

Florida State left two runners on base in the sixth, and faced a dangerous SU lineup. After two easy outs, the Orange put two runners on. Dewes, who hit well earlier in the game, struck out on three straight pitches, leaving two runners on. SU abandoned ten runners on base Saturday.

FSU capitalized in the seventh, scoring four more runs, including the team’s fifth home run. SU’s bats fell short in the seventh, falling 18-9.

“An opportunity lost,” Bosch said. “An opportunity to have a big win.”

Published on April 8, 2017 at 9:30 pm

Contact Matt: mdliberm@syr.edu