LAKE MONTICELLO, Va. (Interstat) — Antonio Perrotta’s two-run homer capped a four-run fourth inning and a parade of Virginia relievers combined for five hitless frames as the fourth-ranked Cavaliers edged Florida State 4-3 on Thursday night at Davenport Field in the opener of an Atlantic Coast Conference series.

The most important part of the game arrived in the bottom of the fourth inning, when Virginia’s offense erupted to erase a three-run deficit. Trailing 3-0, the Cavaliers sent nine men to the plate. Henry Ford’s RBI double and Jake Weatherspoon’s run-scoring single cut the deficit to one before Perrotta, the designated hitter, launched a two-run shot to right field for his second homer of the season, giving Virginia a 4-3 lead it would not relinquish.

The comeback made a winner of Cavaliers starter Kyle Johnson, who was dominant despite the early trouble. Johnson, named the top star for Virginia, worked four innings, allowing just one hit and striking out seven. The three runs charged to him were all unearned, stemming from a critical error by shortstop Eric Becker in the first inning.

That error proved costly. After Florida State’s Jameson Dowd was hit by a pitch, Noah Sheffield reached on Becker’s fielding miscue, putting runners at second and third. Hunter Carns then delivered a two-run single, and Sheffield later scored on a groundout to stake the Seminoles to a 3-0 lead before Virginia recorded an out.

From there, Johnson settled in and the Cavaliers’ bullpen took over. Henry Zatkowski, Lucas Hartman and Tyler Kapa combined to pitch the final five innings without allowing a hit. They walked one and struck out four, with Kapa earning the save with a perfect ninth inning.

Florida State’s offense was stifled after its early output, managing only four hits total. Starter Wes Mendes took the loss, pitching five innings and allowing four runs on nine hits while striking out seven. Reliever Chris Knier was exceptional in relief for the Seminoles, throwing three hitless innings with two strikeouts.

Virginia improved to 24-7 overall and 7-3 in the ACC. Florida State fell to 22-7 and 5-5 in conference play. The result defied the pregame projection from Interstat’s game simulator, which had forecast a high-scoring 8-7 win for Florida State, though the Cavaliers entered as slight favorites with a 53.4% win probability according to the service’s ELO system.

The teams continue the three-game series Friday and Saturday at Davenport Field.