Duke baseball completes dominant ACC Tournament with championship win vs Florida State

CHARLOTTE — Duke baseball left no doubt.

The Blue Devils are ACC Tournament champions for the second time in four years and the first time since 2021.

With a 16-4 win against No. 8 Florida State on Sunday in Charlotte, No. 15 Duke completed a dominant three-game stretch at Truist Field. In its final three games of the tournament, Duke outscored its opponents 32-7.

"I'm exceptionally proud of our team," Duke coach Chris Pollard said.

"I think we've shown incredible resilience. We've had a great year, but we've had to battle the injury bug a little bit down the stretch. Our guys have just been tough, they've been together, and all of that was on display (against Florida State). We played a really complete game; we played a really, really complete tournament."

The victory against the Seminoles (42-15) could also put the Blue Devils (39-18) in position to host an NCAA Tournament regional in Durham as one of the top 16 national seeds.

A season after coming one win shy of a trip to Omaha for the College World Series, Duke will enter the NCAA Tournament as one of the hottest teams in the nation.

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Here are some observations from the Blue Devils’ championship-clinching win against FSU in Charlotte.

Ben Miller breaks out of slump with two home runs

Durham native Ben Miller, a Penn transfer, entered Sunday’s championship game 3-for-27 at the plate in his previous six games. That slump ended in the fourth inning when Miller hit a grand slam over the Piedmont Natural Gas picnic area tent beyond the left-field wall at Truist Field. It broke the game open for the Blue Devils, who cruised in a championship victory. Miller added a two-run blast, finishing with three hits and six RBIs against the Seminoles.

Duke baseball's Devin Obee obliterates baseball with grand slam

It's been quite an ACC Tournament for Duke junior Devin Obee, who finished 7-for-14 at the plate with three home runs and five RBIs across four games in Charlotte. In the sixth inning, Obee obliterated a ball over the left-field wall for a grand slam that extended Duke's lead to 14-4. Obee was named ACC Tournament MVP.

"All I can say is I'm blessed," Obee said. ". ... It's been a long time coming. Throughout this year, ups and downs, but to be able to hear my name called — to hear that I was the MVP — it was just an honor."

AJ Gracia, Duke freshmen spark Blue Devils’ offense

Duke has a crowd of impressive freshmen on its roster, including budding star AJ Gracia. Out of the No. 3 spot in the lineup, Gracia went 3-for-3 with two RBIs. His two-out, two-run double in the second inning gave Duke the lead for good and highlighted a five-run inning. Fellow freshman Chase Krewson and Kyle Johnson combined for three hits and three RBIs, and Krewson threw out a runner at home in the eighth inning to cap an impressive week.

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter. 

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Duke baseball beats Florida State for ACC Tournament championship