After a weekend of statements from the Florida State baseball team, the final one from junior third baseman Drew Mendoza might have been the most emphatic.
"We're back," Mendoza said flatly Sunday evening, shortly after the Seminoles completed a three-game sweep of No. 16 Clemson with a 6-4, come-from-behind victory.
"We needed to get going in the right direction. I think this was a good start for us."
It couldn't have come at a better time.
Before Clemson rolled into town, the Seminoles were mired in one of the worst slumps of legendary head coach Mike Martin's career. They had dropped five of their last six games and 13 of their last 20.
Their pitching and defense had been inconsistent, and their offense had been in an epic funk.
"Everybody seemed to be slumping at the same time," Mendoza said. "Not as much anything wrong, just a learning curve. And turning that corner is a really good feeling."
The learning curve Mendoza referenced related primarily to the large group of freshmen the Seminoles have been counting on this season. On Sunday, FSU had four of them in the starting lineup -- catcher Matheu Nelson, second baseman Nander De Sedas, left fielder Elijah Cabell and right fielder Alec Sanchez. Freshman outfielder Robby Martin has started 28 games as well.
While all of those first-year players are immensely talented, Mendoza said it takes time to make the transition to big-time college baseball. Now that they've played six conference series and several important non-conference games, he believes the the 'Noles are ready to start clicking on all cylinders.
They certainly looked like a different team this weekend. In the three victories against Clemson, FSU racked up a total of 28 runs. That was the same number of runs the Seminoles scored in the previous 11 games.
"I'm excited for the guys," Martin said after Sunday's win.
And FSU's players were excited for each other. For a team that seemed to be unsure of itself in big games earlier this season, the Seminoles played with great passion throughout the weekend.
Closer J.C. Flowers pumped his fist repeatedly after recording a big strikeout in the ninth inning, and FSU's players spilled out of the dugout for lively celebrations after each of their home runs on Saturday and Sunday.
"It's tough to really get a lot of emotion going when you're not scoring runs," said Mendoza, who belted a three-run homer on Friday and a two-run shot on Sunday "Just to break it open on Friday, it just opened everybody up. Everybody took that deep breath and we kept it rolling the rest of the weekend.
"Emotions fly, and that's college baseball for you. It was great to be on the good side of that emotion today."
Just as important as the offensive resurgence was the surprising dominance from the Seminoles' pitching staff. Coming on the heels of impressive starts by Drew Parrish on Friday and CJ Van Eyk on Saturday, FSU received a stellar relief performance from sophomore Conor Grady on Sunday.
Grady struck out 11 of the 18 batters he faced in 5 1/3 innings, while allowing just one hit with no walks and no runs.
"That's pretty darned impressive," Martin said with a laugh.
"All three pitches just happened to have been working this week," said Grady, who also struck out nine batters in a seven-inning start five days earlier against rival Florida. "It was one of those outings where everything was working. I just hope it continues."
As a result of the three wins against Clemson, FSU improved its record in ACC play to 10-8 and also saw a meteoric rise in the RPI ratings. According to the "RPI Live" projections on WarrenNolan.com, the Seminoles have leaped 30 spots to No. 67 nationally.
And the next three ACC series look extremely manageable if FSU can maintain its momentum.
Beginning this Thursday, the Seminoles will play three games at Virginia, which was swept at home this weekend by Miami. The Cavaliers are 21-16 overall and 8-10 in the conference.
FSU's next two weekend series will come at home against Wake Forest and Pitt. The Demon Deacons are 21-16 and 9-9, while the Panthers are 10-24 and 3-15.
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