Bullpen Leads Hurricanes to 5-2 Victory over Owls
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The Miami Hurricanes had flexed their muscles at the plate.
But on a rare off night for the Hurricanes’ offense, the bullpen picked up the slack.
Miami held Florida Atlantic to one hit after the second inning, as the Hurricanes cruised to a 5-2 win Tuesday evening at Mark Light Field.
“Our bullpen is very young and has been a little inconsistent at times,” head coach J.D. Arteaga said. “But tonight, it was good to see those guys step up. Bullpens are what win and lose you games. So, anytime you get a scoreless outing from those guys, that’s a good day.”
After the Owls (20-18) soared out to a 2-0 lead in the first, Miami (18-22) quieted the visitors the rest of the way.
The Hurricanes’ pen combined to pitch seven scoreless frames in relief of starter Ashton Crowther.
After two shutdown innings from freshman Jordan Vargas (1-0), Miami’s lineup came to life.
In the fourth, left fielder Edgardo Villegas put the Hurricanes on the board with an RBI double.
The next batter, third baseman Daniel Cuvet traded places with Villegas to tie the score, 2-2.
After a pair of extra-base hits from the heart of the order, catcher Carlos Perez pushed Miami ahead with a safety squeeze.
The Hurricanes’ pitching staff would do the rest.
Left-hander Myles Caba recorded 11 outs on just 31 pitches, tossing a career-high 3 2/3 frames. The fifth-year redshirt sophomore retired the first nine batters he faced, capping off his standout performance with an inning-ending double play.
“I can’t remember being that efficient in awhile, so it was really promising to see,” said Caba, who missed time recovering from Tommy John surgery. “Two years is a long time. I definitely had to find the way I used to pitch again. To do what I was able to do today, it’s just the beginning.”
Freshman closer Nick Robert (3) put on the finishing touches with a 1-2-3 ninth to give Miami its second straight win.
Up next, the Hurricanes hit the road to face Georgia Tech. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Russ Chandler Stadium.
“Some balls are starting to bounce our way, we’re making some plays and we got some clutch hits,” Arteaga said. “Those are the things that you need to do to win games. We’re still making some mistakes that we’ve got to clean up and get better at.”
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