Florida State advances to Women's College World Series final with 5-1 win vs. Tennessee

Florida State found itself trailing early against Tennessee with a trip to the Women’s College World Series final on the line, but quickly got hot to put things away. The Seminoles delivered three home runs to score five unanswered runs and take control for good in an eventual 5-1 victory to advance.

Zaida Puni gave the Vols a 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the bottom of the first, but it would be short-lived. Michaela Edenfield hit the first of FSU’s three home runs to lead off the second and tie the game. Just one inning later, Bethaney Keen stepped up to the plate to drill her first home run of the entire season and score the go-ahead run.

Things were scoreless over the fourth inning before Florida State added to its lead in the fifth after a single from Jahni Kerr drove in Autumn Belviy. The final blow then came in the top of the sixth when Hallie Wacaser connected on a two-run homer to left field to increase the lead to 5-1, where it would stay.

The Seminoles pitching staff was stout all evening, allowing just three hits in the eventual win. Kathryn Sandercock entered the game in the fifth inning to record the save, striking out four batters to secure the victory. Makenna Reid overcame four illegal pitch calls in the third inning to come away with the win, recording a pair of strikeouts across two innings of work.

This marks the third time in program history that Florida State has advanced to the Women’s College World Series final. The Seminoles previously won the tournament in 2018, taking out Washington in the final.

FSU advances to face Oklahoma in the WCWS finale, which is a best-of-three series. The Sooners and Seminoles also met in the final during the 2021 season, with OU coming out on top. Florida State has a tall task ahead to beat Oklahoma, which is in search of its third straight championship and has won an NCAA record 51 consecutive games.

The two teams met once during the regular season in a game that Oklahoma won 5-4. The Seminoles will hope for different results in the next few days as they hope to claim their second WCWS title in school history.

The first game of the WCWS final is set to take place at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday at Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City and will be televised on ESPN.