Max Williams makes incredible catch, FSU hits back-to-back HRs for early lead vs. UConn
Florida State centerfielder Max Williams got things going in style for the Seminoles defense on Friday in the Tallahassee Super Regional, with a lay-out catch in the top of the 1st inning.
With an out already on the board against UConn, a ball was driven into the left field gap and would’ve been a double or more had it landed. But Williams got in range and splayed out right at the edge of the warning track to haul in the catch.
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The Seminoles kept the energy up in the bottom of the 1st inning, with a pair of back-to-back home runs to take a 3-0 lead before the first inning was even complete.
The second home run, a solo shot from Jamie Ferrer, cleared the scoreboard in left field.
And with another two-run shot in the 2nd inning, Williams and the Seminoles on pace for a cruise to a win in Game 1.
Florida State is a strong favorite to advance to the College World Series
The Seminoles were the eight-seed coming into the Regional round of the NCAA Tournament. UConn, meanwhile, didn’t get to host. Instead, the Huskies went to Norman and were able to win on the road.
Ahead of the Tallahassee Super Regional, the betting lines were released by Fanduel for the Florida State vs. UConn series with the chance to advance to Omaha and the College World Series on the line.
Florida State -320
UConn +235
It’s not surprising to see Florida State is the favorite to win the Tallahassee Super Regional. It’s been an excellent season for the Seminoles and they took care of business in the Regional. For their part, the Huskies were dominant too, taking the Norman Regional from Oklahoma in a winner-takes-all game.
The Super Regional is a best-of-three series between the two teams. The first game is currently scheduled to take place in Tallahassee on Friday at 12:00 p.m. ET. That game is going to be available to watch on ESPN. Game two is going to be on Saturday and game three is on Sunday, if necessary.
And Seminoles head coach Link Jarrett was pleased to get over the hump and into Super Regionals.
“To perform consistently with athletic, talented players gives you an opportunity to sit where we’re sitting right now. That’s what this is about,” Jarrett said.
“It was as bad as it gets. I knew we had to make some roster maneuvers. It took one day to realize what we needed to do. Looking ahead to try to deepen the roster – gain some experience, become more athletic, cover the pitching staff with some depth and some left-handed arms. It was really tough. As you’re going through that, you better be recruiting and you better create a roster that you feel like puts you in this position. It’s not easy. As you’re going through that, you’re saying, ‘This cannot and will not happen again’. Now how do you solve it? The only thing you can do is try to coach them the best you can last year and then try to manage the roster and recruit.”