Florida State holds off Auburn rally attempt

Florida State’s Stuart Tapley is greeted by teammates after scoring a run during the third inning of the Seminoles’ 7-5 win over Auburn on Thursday at Plainsman Park.

By: OANOW STAFF | Opelika Auburn News
Published: February 29, 2008

Auburn came close.

Several times.

But in the end, No. 11 Florida State was just too much for the Tigers. The Seminoles held off an AU comeback for a 7-5 win Thursday, the first game of a four-game series.

“It was a good baseball game between two pretty good teams,” Auburn coach Tom Slater said. “There were some mistakes, but … we’ll learn from those. We’ll get better.”

Auburn (4-1) trailed, 4-0, after three innings. But the Tigers stayed within striking distance in the final two innings.

With AU trailing, 7-5, in the bottom of the ninth and two out, junior outfielder Ben Jones was hit by a pitch. That brought junior Mike Bianucci — AU’s home-run leader last season — to the plate, representing the winning run.

Bianucci struck out on three pitches to end the game. But while Slater wasn’t pleased with the finish, he was proud his team kept things close.

“We had a chance to tie it in the end,” Slater said. “You want to give yourself opportunities, and we certainly did tonight. That’s what good ballclubs do: They give themselves opportunities, even when they’re down.”

FSU (4-0) took advantage of almost all of its opportunities, especially in the early going. The Seminoles scored five runs off AU starter Luke Greinke (1-1), who left after six innings with Auburn trailing, 5-3.

Greinke threw a career-high 102 pitches.

FSU starter Elih Villanueva (2-0) gave up three runs in the fourth inning. He left in the sixth after giving up an RBI double to Joseph Sanders.

That hit pulled Auburn within 5-4, but the Tigers couldn’t come any closer.

AU reliever Bradley Hendrix gave up a two-run home run to FSU’s Dennis Guinn in the eighth. That gave the Seminoles a three-run cushion. And though Auburn scored a run in the eighth to pull within two, the Tigers couldn’t add anything else.

“We kept trying to battle to keep in the game,” Sanders said. “We did our best. It came down to the last inning, like we’d want it to — we’ll try to come out on top next time.”

FSU’s Buster Posey pitched a perfect ninth for his first save.

The series continues today at 3 p.m. Freshman lefthander Cory Luckie will start for Auburn against FSU lefty Matt Fairel.

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