Miami Wins Eighth Straight, Tops Hokies in Extras
BLACKSBURG, Va. – The Hurricanes continued their late-season push Sunday afternoon, finishing off a sweep of host Virginia Tech with a 12-8 win in extra innings at English Field at Union Park.
Miami (25-25, 14-13 ACC) won its eighth straight game after scoring four runs in the top of the 10th to break an 8-8 deadlock in a back-and-forth affair.
The visitors sent eight batters to the plate in the decisive final frame. UM took the lead on a bases-loaded groundball from freshman Raymond Gil that scored senior Michael Perez, who capitalized on a bad throw home by the Hokes infield.
Miami would add a run on a sacrifice fly from redshirt freshman Michael Amditis and freshman Tyler Paige delivered the knockout blow – a two-out, two-RBI single to extend the lead off reliever Andrew McDonald.
Freshman Jeremy Cook escaped any damage in the home half of the 10th, inducing a game-ending flyout from Michael Fernandez that stranded two runners in scoring position and clinched the win.
A day after tying their season mark for hits with 19 in a 16-4 trouncing, the Hurricanes collected 14 more in the series finale, including multi-hit performances from freshman Freddy Zamora (2-for-6), junior Romy Gonzalez (2-for-5), junior Danny Reyes (3-for5) and Gil (3-for-5).
Perez drew a pinch-hit walk to open the 10th and took second on a wild pitch. A single from Gonzalez would set up runners on the corners before McDonald intentionally walked freshman Dylan Cloonan to load the bases.
Playing third for the Hokies, Fernandez fielded the groundball from Gil and fired home to catcher Joe Freiday, Jr. The home plate umpire ruled that Freiday came off the plate, allowing Perez to score.
Virginia Tech challenged the call and the ruling was upheld, with Miami maintaining its 9-8 lead. Amditis and Paige then padded the advantage with late RBI.
For the second straight game, the Hurricanes put together an impressive situational hitting performance; Miami batted 10-for-30 with runners on base and 8-for-25 with runners in scoring position. The Hurricanes recorded six two-out hits and the leadoff runner reached base in six of 10 innings.
Twice Miami found itself trailing after the sixth inning and both times the Hurricanes responded. Down 6-4 in the seventh, Amditis tied the game with a two-out, two-RBI single to left.
After a solo home run from Nick Menken put the Hokies back on top in the home half of the seventh, a two-RBI single from Reyes gave the Hurricanes an 8-7 lead in the eighth.
Once again the Hokies tied it, this time on an RBI single from Tom Stoffel off Miami reliever Frankie Barto.
Bartow (4-0) stranded runners on the corners in the ninth with the game tied 8-8 to force extras before giving way to Cook in the 10th.
McDonald (1-8) allowed five hits and four unearned runs in three innings of relief.
The Hurricanes struck for three runs in the top of the first to jump out to an early lead.
Miami took advantage of a throwing error from catcher Joe Freiday, Jr., after a strikeout from freshman Tony Jenkins on a bouncing pitch that hit the English Field turf. The throw from Freiday sailed over the head of first baseman Sam Fragale, allowing Jenkins to take third on the play.
He would score two batters later on an RBI double from Gonzalez.
With the bases loaded after a walk from Cloonan, a two-RBI single from Gil scored Gonzalez and Isaac Quinones, who was hit by a pitch from Hokies starter Joey Sullivan earlier in the inning.
Sullivan allowed four hits and three unearned runs in three innings. He struck out three and walked two.
Virginia Tech got a run back in the second on a solo home run from Stevie Mangrum and took its first lead at 4-3 after a three-run third.
The Hokies tagged Miami starter Chris McMahon on a wild pitch, an RBI double from Fernandez and a throwing error in the fourth.
Cloonan cut into the deficit with an RBI single to left in the fifth, trimming Tech’s lead to 6-4. The basehit extended the freshman’s hitting streak to a career-long nine games.
McMahon scattered six hits and four runs (three earned) in three innings.
Zamora reached base for the 20thstraight game in the win.
The Hurricanes close out their regular season with four straight home games beginning Tuesday, May 15 vs. Stetson. First pitch for the contest, slated for broadcast on ACC Network Extra and WVUM 90.5 FM, is set for 7 p.m.
