In case you missed the last ‘TN’s Triple-S’ coverage of Florida State Seminoles athletics, here is the recap: Sunday Seminoles Summary: FSU Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball, Softball, and other sports news
While most of the fall sports have completed or are nearing the end of their seasons, we will continue to keep you up to date on any Florida State sports information and media press releases we are sent from the FSU SID or that we source ourselves.
Feel free to include any other FSU related news of any kind that we may have missed in the comment section.
Most of the summaries below are courtesy of FSU SID, Tomahawk Nation, and the Twitters.
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Top seeded Florida State (17-2-3) defeated third seeded Arkansas (13-4-5) by a 1-0 score tonight at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Tallahassee, FL.
Game Recap
Arkansas came out in a 3-5-2 formation. The goal was to dominate the midfield and not let Florida State crank up their well known possession tactics. This strategy was risky because playing with only three in the back means that there will be space for the excellent Seminole front line of Jody Brown, Beata Olsson and Onyi Echegini to exploit. ….{continued *FOR FREE}
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Top-seeded Florida State (16-2-3) defeated fourth-seeded Pittsburgh (14-5-3) by a 3-0 score tonight at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Tallahassee, FL.
Game Recap
The Seminoles wasted no time in cracking the scoreboard. In the second minute Onyi Echegini sent a perfect through ball from deep in the midfield for Jody Brown who was streaking down the field. Brown got behind the Pitt backline who had moved forward in the attack. Echegini’s ball hit Brown perfectly in stride and the junior from Jamaica was one v one with Pitt keeper Ellie Breech…..{continued *FOR FREE}
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- Valenzuela Sparks Noles to 88-57 Win vs. Harvard
CANCUN, Mexico – Mexican-born sophomore forward Mariana Valenzuela totaled a career-high 19 points off the bench to spark Florida State Women’s Basketball to an 88-57 win over Harvard in its final game of the Cancun Challenge on Saturday at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya.
The Seminoles (7-1) finish the tournament 2-1 with wins over Purdue (76-75) and Harvard and a close loss to Oklahoma State (79-77).
Valenzuela played a huge role in Florida State’s breakaway third quarter that ignited Saturday’s win. The Mazatlán, Mexico native delivered 11 of her 19 points in the third as FSU out-scored the Crimson 27-13 to create the cushion it needed. The 14-0 run that helped to seal the game was highlighted by Valenzuela’s back-to-back 3-point field goals that helped FSU run out to a 70-42 advantage.
Valenzuela finished 7-of-10 from the floor and 4-of-5 from 3-point range with plenty of friends and family watching in the stands.
Her 3-point field goal with 2:04 left in the third that gave FSU a 65-42 lead came off graduate guard Jazmine Massengill’s 400th career assist. While Massengill’s career totals do not count in the FSU record books, by comparison’s sake the Seminoles have just four players whom have crossed the 400-career assist line.
Freshman guard Ta’Niya Latson continued to dominate, scoring 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting with four assists. Over her three games played at the Cancun Challenge, Latson averaged 20.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, shot 48.9 percent (23-of-47) from the floor and 44.4 percent (4-of-9) from 3-point range.
Sophomore forward Makayla Timpson picked up her second straight double-double with 15 points and a career-high tying 14 rebounds. Timpson averaged 14.7 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots at the Cancun Challenge.
Senior guard Sara Bejedi added 13 points and four assists with no turnovers. As a team the Seminoles generated 13 assists and turned the ball over just 11 times.
FSU shot 49.3 percent (33-of-67) from the floor and drained nine 3-point field goals while shooting 47.4 percent from deep. Harvard was held to just 29.7 percent shooting and was led by Harmoni Turner’s 23 points.
The Seminoles made it a point of emphasis to create easy chances in the paint, outscoring Harvard 44-20 inside. The bench continued to shine as well, scoring 30 points to Harvard’s 11.
Florida State returns to action with the ACC-Big Ten Challenge on Thursday, Dec. 1, at 7:30 p.m. at Wisconsin in the Kohl Center.
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- Women’s Hoops Gets Past Purdue, 76-75
CANCUN, Mexico – A fourth quarter full of big plays helped guide a resilient Florida State Women’s Basketball team to a 76-75 win over Purdue in game two of the Cancun Challenge on Friday afternoon at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya.
Trailing 59-54 to begin the fourth quarter, the Seminoles executed on both ends of the floor and stole momentum away from the Boilermakers (5-1), handing them their first loss of the season. Sophomore forward Makayla Timpson had her second double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Timpson had eight points and six boards in the final frame, with her offensive board and putback giving FSU a 60-59 lead with 7:45 left in the game – its first lead since the first quarter.
Purdue continued to respond, getting a 3-point field goal by Lasha Petree with 5:01 left to retake the lead at 66-64. FSU graduate guard Jazmine Massengill came up with another clutch 3-ball of her own, hitting one from the left wing to put FSU back on top 67-66 with 4:48 left.
Massengill would come through again after Purdue cut its deficit to 71-70. She came down the floor and hit a pull-up jumper in the paint to give the Seminoles some needed cushion at 73-70 with 1:10 left. A critical stop on the defensive end followed and FSU would put the game away with late free throws.
Ta’Niya Latson led the Seminoles with another 20-point performance, scoring 21 points on 10-of-17 shooting with three rebounds. She has six 20-point games in her first seven games this year.
Sophomore guard O’Mariah Gordon came up big off the bench, earning crunch-time minutes and finishing with 15 points, six rebounds and drawing six fouls. In a tightly contested game, FSU was +5 with Gordon on the floor.
The Noles climbed back from a 10-point deficit in the first quarter to pull out their sixth win of the season. FSU out-scored a physical Purdue team in the paint, 40-24, and had 24 points off the bench. Graduate forward Valencia Myers gave the Seminoles some strong minutes with five points and two rebounds.
FSU was able to escape with a win despite allowing 12 3-point field goals to the Boilermakers, who were led by 15 points each from Petree and Madison Layden. FSU adjusted well in the second to help limit Purdue’s threat from beyond the arc.
The Seminoles finish the Cancun Challenge on Saturday as it faces Harvard at 11 a.m. ET on FloHoops.
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- Noles Fall to Oklahoma State in Nail-Biter
CANCUN, Mexico – Despite out-scoring Oklahoma State, 42-30, in the second half, Florida State Women’s Basketball absorbed its first loss of the season in an entertaining game against the Cowgirls. The Seminoles (5-1) fell 79-77 in their first game of the Cancun Challenge at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya in Cancun, Mexico.
With 13.1 seconds left, Florida State rebounded a missed free throw from The Cowgirls (5-1) and called a timeout trailing by two. A well-drawn up play out of the timeout was nearly executed, but FSU could not convert on the layup attempt as time subsequently ran out following the miss.
Despite putting itself in a 49-35 hole at the half, FSU chipped away in the second half. Freshman guard Ta’Niya Latson scored 16 of her 20 points in the second half and helped spark the Seminoles’ comeback.
Both teams played a back-and-forth fourth quarter where they were going shot for shot, as Oklahoma State always seemed to have a response to a big bucket made by FSU. Sophomore forward Makayla Timpson played big for the Seminoles and got good touches down the stretch of the game, recording 15 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots.
FSU shot 10-of-19 in a critical fourth quarter where they trailed 59-52 at the start. With 2:20 left in the game Claire Chastain of Oklahoma State hit a shot in the paint to give OSU a 76-70 lead with 2:20 left. Latson then scored FSU’s next five points with a couple free throws and a big 3-pointer from the corner to leave the Noles trailing 78-75 with 1:07 remaining.
A key stop by FSU was followed by Timpson getting one to go underneath to cut the deficit to 78-77 with 13.1 seconds left. The Noles then fouled and despite OSU hitting 1-of-2 from the line, the Seminoles couldn’t finish.
Two other double-figure scorers stepped up for FSU in senior guard Sara Bejedi (13 points) and sophomore O’Mariah Gordon (11 points). FSU out-scored OSU off the bench, 17-11, and had 13 fast-break points against OSU’s eight.
Oklahoma State’s Naomie Alnatas led four double-figure scorers with 19 points.
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- Making History: Ta’Niya Latson Sweeps ACC Awards Again
Florida State Women’s Basketball guard Ta’Niya Latson has become the first ACC student-athlete ever to sweep the league’s weekly awards in consecutive weeks, announced on Monday by the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Last week, Latson became just the seventh player to win both awards when she took home honors for ACC Player and Rookie of the Week. On Monday, she repeated the feat once again after averaging 26.5 points in wins over rival Florida and on the road at Houston.
Latson led FSU in scoring in both games this past week, topping Florida with 32 points and leading the Seminoles with 21 at Houston. FSU defeated the Gators in the Fresh From Florida Sunshine Showdown, 92-77, and followed with a gritty 79-73 overtime win at Houston.
Latson, through her first four games after playing UF, already became the 10th Seminole to record multiple 30-point games in a season. She also had 34 points at Kent State.
The freshman led the Seminoles in scoring (26.5 points), field goals made (20) and free throws made (11) in what was a 2-0 week. She currently leads the ACC in scoring at 26.8 points per game, more than six points ahead of Hailey Van Lith (20.2) at Louisville who is in second place.
Latson leads the NCAA in total points with 134, ranks second with 49 made field goals and is fifth nationally averaging 26.8 points per game.
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The Florida State volleyball team (19-10, 11-7) fell in three sets (19-25, 14-25, 22-25) at No. 13 Georgia Tech (20-7, 13-5) Saturday afternoon in front of a packed and loud O’Keefe Gym in Atlanta, Ga.
The Seminoles struggled to get anything going offensively in the first set as the Yellow Jackets used a key 8-2 run in the middle of the set to create separation. Georgia Tech would go on to win the set 25-19.
The second set saw a similar path to the first set as the Yellow Jackets pulled away again in the middle of the set to dominate the second set 25-14.
The third set was the most competitive as the Seminoles were able to find some rhythm offensively. Unlike the first two sets, the Seminoles were able to use a run of their own in the middle of the set to take a 16-15 lead. The two teams traded points and the Noles got within one at 22-23, but the Yellow Jackets took the final two points to take the match.
For the second consecutive match, Audrey Rothman led the Seminoles in the kill category with seven. Khori Louis added six kills.
The Noles will learn its postseason fate on Sunday night with the NCAA Selection Show. The show begins at 7:3o p.m. and can be seen live on ESPNU.
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- Noles Dominate Miami on the Road in Straight Sets
The Florida State volleyball team (19-9, 11-6) made a strong case for a NCAA Tournament bid Wednesday afternoon with a sweep (25-20, 25-16, 25-22) over the Miami Hurricanes (19-10, 12-6) in Coral Gables, Fla. This is the first time the Seminoles have swept the Hurricanes in Coral Gables since 2016 and it is also the first time the Noles have beaten Miami twice in the same season since 2019.
“I’m really proud of our team today,” Head Coach Chris Poole said. “They did a great job following the game plan and were focused all match. Miami is always a tough place to play. It’s a great time to play our best match of the year against a top 30 team.”
Miami jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the first set, but then the Seminoles took over the match. The Noles used a furious run to take a 15-14 lead and went on to take 10 out of the final 16 points to take the first set. The Noles dominated every aspect of the set hitting .265 while holding the Hurricanes to a .091 hitting percentage.
The Seminoles used that momentum from the first set and jumped out to a 15-7 lead and never looked back in a 25-16 second set victory.
The third set started the same way as set one with the Noles jumping out to a 8-2 lead. The Noles used a fierce 7-0 run to tie the match at 10. The two teams traded points, but the Noles used a quick 3-0 run to create some separation and went on to clinch the match.
After not playing in the first match against Miami due to injury, freshman Audrey Rothman made her presence known with a game-high 13 kills on just 19 attempts. Audrey Koenig added 11 kills for the Noles.
The Noles will complete the regular season on Saturday with a match against No. 13 Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Ga, at 1 p.m. on ACCNX. The Noles will then find out their postseason fate on Sunday night. The NCAA Tournament Selection Show begins at 7:30 p.m. and can be seen live on ESPNU.
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We continue our dive into the 2023 Florida State softball program, this week we take a look at the two sophomores currently returning to Tallahassee. In addition to Amaya Ross and Krystina Hartley, Lonni Alameda and her staff recently added the addition of Katie Dack, via the transfer portal, to the sophomore class….{continued *FOR FREE}
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We continue our dive into the 2023 Florida State softball program, this week its part two of the redshirt players.
After suffering an injury in 2021, Jahni Kerr looked to return last season. Back in the lineup in 2022, Kerr posted a .261 batting average. Her success late in the season saw her move her way up through the lineup. While at the plate she recorded 47 hits, 25 runs scored, 10 doubles, 5 home runs, 35 RBI, and was walked 10 times…{continued *FOR FREE}
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Now that the September 1st window has come and gone for college softball, the class of 2024 can start announcing verbal commits to their schools. For Florida State, they have started to receive verbals. This thread will be dedicated to the players who have posted about committing to the Garnet and Gold starting in 2024..{continued *FOR FREE}
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Check out our dedicated Fanpost for FSU Women’s sports for any Women’s sports news you come across and can share to help keep your community up to date on what is happening in FSU women’s athletics during the week…{continued *FOR FREE}
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- Men’s Basketball Falls To Stanford, 70-60, At ESPN Events Invitational
Brandon Angel scored a game-high 22 points on eight made field goals and two three-pointers to lead Stanford to a 70-60 victory over the Seminoles in the second round of the ESPN Events Invitational at the State Farm Field House. Harrison Ingram and Michael Jones each contributed 10 points of their own to lead Stanford to their third win of the season.
Caleb Mills scored a team-high 16 points and pulled down five rebounds for Florida State. He led four Seminoles in double figure scoring, Cam’Ron Fletcher (12 points), Darin Green, Jr. (11 points), and Naheem McLeod (10 points). Mills has scored in double figures in five of the Seminoles last six played, with this being his fourth game in a row in double digits.
McLeod once again brought his radiant energy to the court, shooting four for four from in the paint. Cameron Corhen and Mills each shot a perfect two for two from the free throw line.
Florida State began the first half with an early eight point lead as Fletcher made a three-point field goal in the first seconds of the game. The Seminoles took a 27-21 lead into the intermission. Mills was the team-high scorer in both points (eight) and rebounds (two) in the first 20 minutes. Fletcher and McLeod contributed six points to the first half, pulling down two rebounds to join Mills in a first half team-high.
Although Stanford outscored the Seminoles 49-33 in the second half, Florida State led the Cardinals in every category for the game. From the field, the Seminoles had a .438 shooting percentage (21-48) and a .300 shooting percentage (6-20) from beyond the arc. They held Stanford to a .422 shooting percentage inside the paint and only allowed three of 26 (.115) attempts to be made from the three-point line.
Stanford scored 27 points off of the Seminoles 14 turnovers. Florida State dominated a majority of the game, holding the lead for 22 minutes compared to their opponents 15 minutes. The latter part of the second half led to the Seminoles downfall, as the Cardinals went on a 10-0 scoring run with only six minutes left in the game.
Florida State will play in round three of the ESPN Events Invitational on Sunday against Memphis or Nebraska at 7:30 p.m. ET.
BOX SCORE STATISTICS GAMEBOOK PHOTO GALLERY
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Coming off their first win of the season on Monday against the Mercer Bears, there was some hope that maybe FSU’s darkest days were behind them. The depth is slowly improving as some of the injured players are working their way back into playing shape. The defensive intensity looked a little better against Mercer and Cam’Ron Fletcher has a breakout game setting a career high.
That hope was quickly extinguished in this one….{continued *FOR FREE}
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Florida State basketball hosted the Mercer Bears on Monday night, in search of their first win of the season. The Seminoles have started 0-4 for the first time since 1959, hitting one of the biggest bumps in the Leonard Hamilton era. Much of dismay has to with constant offensive struggles, but the Noles don’t seem to have a clear answer on any side of the ball…..{continued *FOR FREE}
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This is the place we’ve set up for our members to discuss the Florida State Seminoles men’s basketball for any breaking news, recruiting, players eligible for the NBA Draft, and any other basketball related news you may want to bring up for discussion….{Continued *FOR FREE}
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