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In an unpredictable game where neither team gained the upper hand through six innings, Miami finally surged ahead in the seventh inning with five runs, establishing a commanding lead that the Bluejays couldn’t respond to. The Canes secured victory in the first game, aiming to clinch the series tomorrow night with Rob Evans pitching.
Changes to tonight’s lineup included Michael Torres returning to center field after sitting out the FIU game, during which he pinch-hit in the 9th inning. Fabio Peralta shifted from center to left field, replacing Dylan Dubovik. AJ Cisco is on the mound.
Throughout the first six innings, the game was quite unpredictable, with Miami playing catch-up against a determined Creighton team aiming for a major upset. Miami finally took the lead in the sixth inning, only for the Bluejays to respond in the top of the seventh and tie the score again. Seizing the opportunity as Creighton’s bullpen weakened, Miami aggressively loaded the bases and scored two runs on walks. With the bases still loaded, Derek Williams cleared the bases with a double down the right field line, giving the Hurricanes a five-run cushion. Ryan Bilka took over in the eighth, shutting down Creighton’s bats in order.
AJ Ciscar struggled tonight, losing the leadoff batter in four of his five innings, allowing 7 hits and three runs with only 4 strikeouts, marking a season low. In the first inning, he gave up singles to the first two batters he faced on 0-2 counts. A fortunate double play (6-4-3) briefly favored him, but Creighton responded with an RBI single to take an early 1-0 lead. Miami countered with a powerful swing from Daniel Cuvet, who hit his eighth home run, traveling 343 feet to right field.
The next two innings remained scoreless until Crighton, their third leadoff batter in four innings, reached safely with an opening single. A sacrifice bunt followed by a double put the Bluejays back in the lead, 2-1. For the second time, Miami responded with an opening walk to Alvarez, followed by an infield hit back to the pitcher by Sheahan, putting runners on first and second. Fabio advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt, and Torres grounded out 5-3, allowing Alvarez to score and tie the game after four innings at two.
Into the fifth inning, AJ once again allows the leadoff batter on base, this time via a walk, setting up Crighton’s third run. A groundout (5-3) advances the runner to second, and he scores on an RBI double. Miami responded for the third time, with Daniel launching his ninth home run, traveling 389 feet to left field to tie the game at three. Miami nearly took the lead with the bases loaded after Daniel’s HR on a walk to Sosa, a single by West, and Sheahan being hit by a pitch to load the bases, but Fabio grounded out 6-3.
The sixth inning featured a pitching change for both teams. Jack Durso entered and kept the Bluejays off the scoreboard after issuing a hit and a walk. With the Crighton starter finishing for the night, Miami took advantage of what appeared to be a weakened bullpen, starting with a disputed single by Michael Torres. The play was appealed—whether he was out of the baseline or failed to touch the green bag. Replay footage clearly showed he remained on the baseline and touched the bag. The initial ruling, declaring an error on the pitcher’s throw to first, was overturned into a hit; Torres advanced to second on the high throw to first. The call stood, but the reason for the challenge was not clarified. Ogden then walked, and a wild pitch allowed both runners to move up. With the bases loaded and no outs, Cuvet intentionally walked to load the bases. Sosa hit a shallow fly to right, which held the runners. Williams then drew a walk, giving Miami its first lead at 4-3. The bases remained loaded. West and Alvarez both worked the count to 3-0 before striking out on three pitches. Though a breakout inning was missed, Miami ultimately took the lead for the first time, ending the inning ahead at 4-3.
Crighton, trailing for the first time, responded by tying the game in the seventh with an RBI double that scored the runner from second, who had reached base on a two-out single and then stolen second. For the fourth time, the game is once again tied. Miami made a pitching change, bringing in Lyndon Guidewell to retire the next batter in two pitches, ending his brief visit to the mound before handing the ball over to Ryan Bilka to finish.
This back-and-forth contest finally concluded in the bottom of the 7th inning, as Miami capitalized on relief pitchers—three in total—with five runs, leaving Crighton unable to respond. Miami’s batters went through the order, sending nine players to the plate, beginning with a one-out single by Fabio. The rally escalated quickly: Torres walked, Ogden was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Cuvet and Sosa both drew walks, driving in two runs. Derek William then sealed the inning with a double, clearing the bases. For the first time, Miami held a commanding 9-4 lead with two innings remaining.
Ryan Bilka, as expected of the Closer he’s promoted to be, was impressive in striking out two of the three batters faced in the 8th inning and quickly finished Crighton in the 9th, facing just three batters.
The team’s performance at the plate fell short of expectations for a breakout. Although they maintained a batting average of .303 overall, they struggled with runners in scoring position, going 1-16 and leaving 13 runners on base. With bases loaded, they were 1-5. Key contributors included Daniel Cuvet, Alex Sosa, and Derek Williams, who combined for five hits and accounted for nine of the ten runs scored. Daniel and Alex each recorded multiple hits—Daniel with two home runs and Alex with two doubles. Williams also added a double. Fabio Peralta, along with Cuvet and Sosa, contributed two singles.
Regarding pitching performance, AJ Ciscar had a challenging night, lasting only 5 innings, throwing 81 pitches, and recording just 4 strikeouts. A notable concern was that he lost the leadoff batter in four of the five innings. In the second inning, he successfully retired the leadoff batter and followed with his usual effectiveness, retiring the next two hitters. Crighton scored in three of the five innings, which is uncharacteristic compared to his usual performance. On the second consecutive night, the bullpen-Durso, Glidewell, and Bilka—appeared very sharp, allowing only one run and two hits, both by Durso, who pitched 1.2 innings. Glidewell needed just two pitches to record the final out in the seventh, and Bilka pitched the last two innings.
They face off again in Game 2, kicking off at 6 PM with Rob Evans pitching for the Canes.
