April 27, 2001
ATLANTA – Wes Rynders’ bases-loaded RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted 10th-ranked Georgia Tech (32-13, 11-8 ACC) to a 9-8 come from behind victory over No. 8 Florida State (34-13, 14-2) on Friday night at Russ Chandler Stadium in the opener of a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series.
Trailing 8-6 after eight and a half innings, the Yellow Jackets rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning. Bryan Prince led off the frame with a single, and took third base after Jason Perry reached on an error. Jason Basil and Victor Menocal followed with back-to-back RBI singles to tie the score at 8-8. Matt Murton reached on an error with one out to load the bases before Rynders delivered the game-winning hit to left field.
Tech’s Brian Burks (3-0) picked up the win in relief. Tech starter Steve Kelly did not figure in the decision after allowing seven runs in 7.2 innings. Kelly allowed five runs in the first three innings, but settled down to retire 16 straight batters from the third through the eighth innings.
FSU closer Justin Lord (2-2) took the loss after allowing three unearned runs in 0.1 innings of work.
Florida State took an early lead with four runs in the top of the first inning, highlighted by RBI singles from Mike Futrell and Jeff Probst. The Seminoles stretched the lead to 5-0 on a RBI double from Futrell in the third inning.
Tech trimmed the lead to 5-4 in the bottom of the fourth. Basil led off the inning with his 10th homer of the year, and Matthew Boggs and Richard Lewis each added RBI singles in the inning.
The Yellow Jackets scored two more runs in the fifth to take a 6-5 lead. A RBI double from Brad Stockton scored Menocal from second base, while a RBI single from Murton drove in Stockton.
The Seminoles rallied to take a 7-6 lead with two runs in the top of the eighth on RBI singles from Futrell and Jeff Probst. Bryan Zech scored on Burks’ throwing error to make the score 8-6 in the top of the ninth.
Menocal and Murton each had three hits for the Yellow Jackets, while Basil, Lewis, Stockton and Rynders added two hits apiece. Futrell paced the Florida State attack with three hits and three RBI, but the Seminoles were undone by a season-high five errors.
Georgia Tech and Florida State will continue the three-game ACC series on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Russ Chandler Stadium. The game will be televised on Fox Sports Net South and broadcast on WREK-Radio (91.1 FM in Atlanta) and on the internet at www.ramblinwreck.com.
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