Tallahassee, Fla. – Mike Martin sat back and relaxed as his Florida State hitters crossed the plate one after another.
The Seminoles coach was working with a 32-run lead — and it was only the fifth inning.
Stephen Cardullo set a tournament record with seven hits, including three of Florida State’s NCAA-record 15 doubles, as the Seminoles routed Ohio State 37-6 on Sunday in the Tallahassee regional and advanced to the super regional.
‘I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything like it,’ Martin said.
Florida State (45-16) set NCAA postseason records with 37 runs, 38 hits and 66 total bases, while Cardullo tied the school mark for hits in an offensive performance the football team would’ve been proud of. The Seminoles set or tied 18 NCAA, school or postseason records.
Jason’ ‘ , the regional’s most outstanding player, hit a two-run double as the Seminoles scored eight times in the first and cruised past the pitching-depleted Buckeyes (42-19), who trailed 32-0 in the fifth.
‘Everything they did was right,’ said Ohio State coach Bob Todd, who went through seven pitchers in an attempt to stem the rout. ‘Everything we did was wrong.’
The teams combined for a single-game postseason record for hits (51) and tied the mark for runs, which was previously set in Miami, Ohio’s 35-8 victory over Quinnipiac on June 4, 2005.
Ohio State starter Jared Strayer allowed seven earned runs without recording an out. Andrew Armstrong, the Buckeyes’ fifth pitcher, was tagged for 11 earned runs in one-third of an inning.
‘It was a great feeling,’ Cardullo said. ‘It’s definitely true that hitting is contagious.’