Hurricanes Sweep Duke With 7-1 Win
March 19, 2006
DURHAM, N.C. (www.hurricanesports.com) – Miami’s Scott Maine turned in a career performance on the mound, throwing eight shutout innings in a 7-1 win against Duke at Jack Coombs Field Sunday afternoon. Freshman Jemile Weeks provided plenty of offense for the Hurricanes, going 3-for-5 with a home run, triple and three runs scored.
The 19th-ranked Hurricanes won their 15th-straigh game and improved to 21-6 overall and 6-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Duke fell to 8-16 and 1-5 in the ACC with the loss.
Maine struck out four and walked one, using just 91 pitches to get through a career-high eight innings of work. He gave up two singles and lowered his season ERA to 2.73. Maine’s performance also capped an outstanding showing by Miami’s starting pitchers in the series. Carlos Gutierrez threw seven innings of shutout ball in Friday’s win and Manny Miguelez gave up one unearned run and struck out 10 batters in Saturday’s win.
Duke starter Jonathan Anderson (1-2) was charged with the loss and lasted six innings, giving up five runs on seven hits with a strikeout and three walks.
Weeks’ defensive performance was nearly as impressive as his offensive numbers. He recorded a team season-high nine assists at second base, helped turn two double plays, had five putouts and made a diving stab and throw on a ninth-inning grounder. His triple was the fourth of the season and extended his hitting streak to a team-high 13 games.
Hurricane catcher Eddy Rodriguez added to the Hurricane offense with his team-leading fifth home run of the season. Tommy Giles went 2-for-4 with two RBI and three stolen bases, and Walter Diaz went 2-for-4 with a RBI.
The Hurricanes were retired in order until Gus Menendez hit a one-out single up the middle in the third inning. A snap throw to first from Duke catcher Matt Williams sailed into right field, allowing Menendez to advance to second. Diaz followed with a single up the middle to push Menendez home for the 1-0 Miami lead.
Rodriguez doubled Miami’s lead in the fifth with his fifth home run of the season on the first pitch of the inning from Anderson.
Weeks tripled to lead off the sixth and scored on Jay’s single up the middle for a three-run lead. Anderson walked Yonder Alonso and Danny Valencia’s sac bunt advanced Jay and Alonso to second and third. Giles hit a ground-rule double to left field to drive in two more runs.
Alonso drove in Weeks from third in the seventh with a single off Duke reliever Ryan Perry. Weeks reached base on a single to left and advanced to third on a failed pickoff attempt and balk by Perry before scoring on Alonso’s single for a 6-0 Miami lead. He put Miami up 7-0 in the ninth with his second home run of the season to left field.
Duke scored its only run of the game in the bottom of the ninth on Brett Bartles’ RBI single off UM reliever Jon McLean.
Miami completes its six-game road swing with a three-game series at Maryland next week, beginning with a 7 p.m. first pitch on Friday, March 24.
