FSU Softball wins 2023 ACC Softball Tournament Championship

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Noles247) - No. 1 seed Florida State defeated No. 2 seed Duke, 2-1, on a walk-off single by Bethany Keen that scored Devyn Flaherty from first base at Melissa Cook Stadium in South Bend, Ind. on Saturday afternoon. With the victory, FSU wins their second-straight and 19th overall ACC Tournament Championship. FSU has 19 ACC Tournament Championships in 25 ACC Championship game appearances. FSU swept the ACC Regular Season Championship and ACC Tournament Championship for the 14th time in school history. FSU last achieved that feat in 2019.

FSU is 50-8 heading into NCAA Tournament play as the automatic qualifier from the ACC. They have won 16 in a row and 28 of their last 30. Duke, who FSU defeated in three-of-four meetings this season, is now 45-10. This year’s NCAA softball bracket field of 64 will be revealed at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 14 on ESPN2.

Makenna Reid got the start in the circle for the Seminoles. She threw the first two innings, allowing two hits and striking out one.

In the third inning, Kathryn Sandercock took over in the circle. She immediately got into a bases-loaded jam, due in part to hitting a pair of batters, but escaped that unscathed.

In the bottom half of the third inning, FSU plated the first run of the game. With two outs, Kaley Mudge bunted for a single beating out the throw at first base. She then went first-to-home on a double to left center by Jahni Kerr.

The Blue Devils got their leadoff batter to second via a two-base error. After a sacrifice bunt moved the runner to third, they scored the tying run on a passed ball.

With one on and one out in the bottom of the sixth inning, Michaela Edenfield hit one into the glove of the third baseman but it squirted out and the throw to first got away. Kerr, who had reached earlier in the frame, went first-to-third while Edenfield went to second. After a huddle of the game’s umpiring crew, it was ruled a double play.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, Keen’s single to left, which dropped into shallow left, allowed Flaherty, who had singled a batter earlier, to go first-to-home.

The FSU dugout emptied and the Seminoles celebrated.

Sandercock earned the victory for FSU, moving to 23-3 on the season. She threw the final 5.0 innings, allowing two hits, one run (unearned), while walking one and striking out five. She hit a pair of batters.

FSU is now 76-20 all-time in the ACC Tournament and 35-5 in their time under head coach Lonnie Alameda. FSU has now won nine ACC titles under the guidance of Alameda, who became head coach in 2009.

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