TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Northern Illinois University baseball team took the #10 Florida State Seminoles to the limit and then some on Sunday night, but the hosts scored three runs in the top of the 10th to defeat the Huskies 7-4 in an elimination game at the NCAA Baseball Tallahassee Regional at Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium.
"I'm proud of our group, our toughness and our fight," said head coach
Ryan Copeland. "This team changed the standards and expectations of NIU Baseball forever. It hurts right now but we have a lot to back on that's good. The journey is special to get to this point, especially for a program like us that doesn't have much in postseason experience. For a team with 20 new players to be this close and play for each other, I couldn't be more proud to be the head coach of this program."
NIU (36-19), which won its first Mid-American Conference championship and earned its first NCAA Tournament win this postseason, finishes the year with a program record 36 wins. The Huskies improved by 15 victories over the previous year.
Florida State (40-18) opened the scoring in the top of the first. Brody DeLamielleure laced a double down the left field line to score John Stuetzer and put the Seminoles up 1-0. NIU starting pitcher
Carter Cox (St. Peters, Mo./Fort Zumwalt South) retired Hunter Carns and Nathan Cmeyla to get out of the inning
The Huskies responded in the bottom of the first.
Cole Smith (Dubuque, Iowa/Bradley) reached on a Gabe Fraser error with one out and took second on a two-out wild pitch.
Gavin Baldwin (Nashville, Ill./SEMO) launched a two-run home run over the left field wall to give the Huskies a 2-1 lead.
The Seminoles took back the lead in the top of the second. A run-scoring groundout and a Steutzer two-out RBI single gave Florida State a 3-2 lead. Cox held the Seminoles to those three runs, throwing five scoreless innings with four strikeouts.
"It's what you dream of, to play in an environment like this," Cox said. "I made sure I was taking everything in. I had my boys behind me so I knew I had to throw strikes and do my thing."
"Carter competed very well against one of the best offenses in the country," added Copeland. "He kept Florida State off balance and made some big time pitches. Carter willed himself to seven innings after pitching two days ago."
NIU tied the game in the fourth as a Baldwin leadoff home run, his second of the night, made the score 3-3. The Huskies had runners at first and second with one out after a
Vinny Spotofora (Shorewood, Ill./Lake Land College) walk and
Caden Robertson (Magnolia, Texas/Central Oklahoma) single, but Florida State reliever Chris Knier got a double play to get out of the inning.
The Huskies broke the tie in the bottom of the seventh. Spotofora led off with a single. Florida State then missed a double play opportunity as Fraser had an errant throw to second baseman Carter McCulley which let Spotofora get second base and Robertson to reach on a fielder's choice.
Ivan Dahlberg (Minooka, Ill./Illinois-Springfield) then dropped a bunt at Knier who bobbled the ball to allow NIU to load the bases. After a lineout double play gave NIU runners at second and third,
Wyatt Wawro (Darien, Ill./Downers Grove South) was hit by a pitch to load the bases once again. Smith drew a walk to score Spotofina and give NIU a 4-3 lead.
Florida State tied the game 4-4 in the top of the eighth. Cmeyla drove in Carns from first base with a double to left center.
Danny Cihocki (Princeton, Ill./Lake Land College) stranded Cmeyla at second with a pair of groundouts to keep the game level. Neither side scored in the ninth to send the game to extra innings.
Brayden Dowd led off the top of the 10th with a walk, getting to third on a DeLamielleure single. Carns drove in Dowd with a sacrifice fly to give Florida State a 5-4 lead. A Chase Williams groundout to Baldwin at first base moved DeLamielleure to second. Ban Barrett then hit a two-run home run over the right field fence to make the score 7-4. The Huskies got a two-out single from Baldwin in the bottom of the 10th but were held off the scoreboard as the Seminoles won 7-4 to advance to Monday's regional final.
Baldwin was 3-for-5 against Florida State with two home runs and three RBI. The graduate first baseman finished the season with 17 home runs, one shy of tying Colin Summerhill's single-season record of 18 set in 2024. Baldwin finishes his NIU career with 33 home runs, the third-most in program history.
"Gavin was outstanding in the postseason when it mattered most," said Copeland. "He had a great season, nearly broke the home run record, and kept us in the game. Gavin brought some toughness to our program and a good dymanic."
NIU started the day against St. John's in a matchup of Friday's two winners. The Huskies took the lead in the bottom of the second on a
Marcus Romero (Brighton, Colo./South Mountain College) leadoff home run, his second home run of the year. NIU then added four runs in the third on a two-run double off the bat of Smith and a two-run single with two outs from Robertson that put the Huskies up 5-0.
St. John's (35-24) took the lead in the top of the fourth, scoring nine times to take a 9-5 lead. A two-run single from Jon LeGrande and a two-run double by Will Cowan highlighted the frame. The Red Storm added six runs in the fifth and three in the seventh to take an 18-5 lead. NIU put two runs on the board in the bottom of the seventh on home runs by
Kayden Jennings (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) and Romero, his second of the game, to make the score 18-7. The Red Storm went on to win 21-8 to advance to the regional final.
The Huskies are thriving in this new era of college athletics. With your continued support, our program is positioned not only to compete for championships, but to bring them home. This latest title is a testament to what is possible when commitment meets excellence. As we celebrate this achievement, we invite you to be part of what comes next by giving to the Boneyard Competitive Excellence Fund, because the future of Huskie championships starts with you.
—NIU—
