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The Yellow Jackets of Georgia Tech came in ranked 13th in the nation and were one of the most explosive teams in the ACC. After facing off against their first HURRICANE of the season, they exit as the RAMBLIN WRECK, which they appropriately earned.
Another excellent pitching performance limited Tech to just five hits, matching their run total from last night of only two. The Canes continued to keep the pedal to the metal, striking first and stunning the Jackets with four runs in the first inning, and did not let up on the acceleration until the fifth. As for the Tech hitters, they faced another freshman phenomenon, Tate DeRias, who was untouchable through the first three innings. Not until the fourth inning did Tech see their first base runner, and they were finally able to respond after Miami had eight unanswered runs on the board. With Tate’s perfect game slipping away in the fourth, the offense made up for the lost shutout by matching the one run Tech managed to score and adding another, bringing the score to 10-1. Being Easter, and not wanting to further embarrass the former leader in the ACC before this weekend’s series, they eased up on the gas. Tech scraped together another run in the fifth, but it remained scoreless for the rest of the game for each team. In fact, Miami never got another hit after the fourth and only reached base when Evan Taveras was hit by a pitch in the seventh and Daniel Cuvet walked in the eighth. Miami’s bullpen was rock solid, allowing just one hit in the ninth inning, and like last night, the game ended on a double play, bringing out the brooms for a 10-2 conference SWEEPING win.
If you were late coming to the game, you would have missed the explosiveness of the Miami offense, which didn’t waste any time putting runs on the board. Jake led off with a double, followed by back-to-back singles by Max Galvin and Daniel Cuvet for Miami’s initial run. Dorian executed a perfect SAC bunt, advancing Max and Daniel to second and third, respectively. Neither of them had time to enjoy their stay at their respective bases when Tanner Smith brought them home with his third home run of the season. Just like that, in the blink of an eye, Miami is standing on top of the leaderboard with a 4-0 score.
Not content with four runs in the first inning, they continued to put pressure on Tech’s starter with a two-out double by Max, followed by Daniel’s RBI single in the second. Still relentless, Michael Torres added his name to the HR list with his first collegiate home run, following Evan Taveras, who had walked, and Renzo Gonzalez, who had singled as they crossed home plate, bringing the score to 8-0 in the third. After conceding an initial run to Tech in the 4th, they responded with two runs in the bottom half of the inning- first, a bases-loaded walk to Evan, and then a sacrifice fly to left by Renzo, extending the score to 10-1.
Tech secured an additional run in the 5th inning with an RBI single. However, they were unable to score again for the remainder of the game, thanks to the outstanding relief pitching by Carson Fischer and Jackson Cleveland.
It was a weekend when the bats became electrified. Today, ten more hits were added to the twelve from last night and seven from Friday night. Leading the charge today were the top of the batting order- Jake, Max, and Daniel- each with a pair of hits. Jake and Max hit doubles, while Daniel recorded a pair of RBIs. Tanner Smith and Michael Torres contributed to the ten runs scored, each hitting a home run. The team collectively batted .313 and was five for seven with runners in scoring position.
This weekend, our pitching and defense were absolutely flawless. Our starters delivered exceptional performances, and the bullpen stepped up without missing a beat when called upon. The defense was relentless, executing one unbelievable play after another.
This team has undeniably turned a page and is now a formidable contender for postseason play. Their RPI has surged to 36, climbing more than 40 points in just ten days, placing them firmly in the mix for postseason opportunities. With a strength of schedule ranked 13th, their performance indicates that their trajectory is unmistakably upward. They must continue to dominate their mid-week games and, crucially, maintain a positive record in weekend conference matchups. Currently, they stand at 11th position in the ACC and have a crucial three-game series against Boston this coming weekend.
First and foremost, we must focus on our cross-town rival, FIU, as we prepare to face them this Wednesday night at 6:00 PM. Our last encounter was an embarrassing 10-2 defeat on our own field. In rivalry games, anything can and will go wrong, so we mustn’t take the pedal off the metal and cage the Panthers once and for all.
