Hurricanes Stay Hot, Take Down FGCU Tuesday
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The Miami Hurricanes baseball team (22-7, 4-5 ACC) took down the Florida Gulf Coast Owls Tuesday night at Mark Light Field by a final score of 12-4. With home runs from Derek Williams and Brylan West leading the way, Miami now moves to a perfect 8-0 record in midweek matchups this season.
Miami reliever Jake Dorn (3-0) earned the win, tossing three scoreless innings while allowing just two hits and striking out four in relief. FGCU starter Preston Rogers (3-3) was charged with the loss after surrendering four runs on two hits across 2.2 innings.
Miami wasted no time getting on the board, as Williams brought home Jake Ogden with an RBI groundout in the first inning to make it 1-0. The early spark continued a consistent trend for the Hurricanes, who have now scored in the opening frame in 14 of their last 17 games.
Scoring first has proven to be a strong formula for Miami this season, as the Hurricanes have gone 17-4 when plating the game’s first run.
FGCU answered in the second, capitalizing on a wild pitch to even the score at 1-1.
Miami regained control in the third inning behind Williams again, as the senior launched a three-run homer to deep left field, scoring Ogden and Alex Sosa to push the lead to 4-1.
Williams has been one of Miami’s most consistent offensive threats this season, batting .415 with 44 hits, 11 doubles, and a team-high 11 home runs while driving in 47 runs and posting an .830 slugging percentage and 1.338 OPS. The senior has also caught fire at the plate recently, riding a nine-game hitting streak.
FGCU chipped away in the fourth with a long ball of their own, cutting into the deficit with a two-run home run from Sebastian Lippman to make it a one-run game at 4-3.
The Hurricanes threatened again in their next trip to the plate. Ogden brought in Vance Sheahan with an RBI single that made it 5-3, then Daniel Cuvet worked a walk to double the lead, 6-3. Ogden finished perfect at the plate Tuesday, going 4-for-4 with four runs scored.
Miami really broke things open in the sixth with a four-run surge, adding some insurance runs to pull away. Fabio Peralta got the inning started with a single to shallow left, followed by an Ogden infield single that moved him into scoring position. After a flyout advanced both runners, Sosa delivered the big swing, ripping a two-run double down the right field line to score Peralta and Ogden.
Williams followed with a groundout that moved Sosa to third, setting the table for West, who launched a two-run homer to deep left field to make the score 10-3, Miami. To cap the offensive attack, Alonzo Alvarez belted a double, then Sheahan lined an RBI single on a full count, making it an eight-run Miami lead.
Cuvet tallied another for Miami in the bottom of the seventh off a line drive double down the right field line to push Miami further ahead, 12-3.
The Eagles tallied a run in the top of the ninth, but Miami put an end to any kind of comeback, moving to a perfect 8-0 record in midweek contests.
Miami now turns its focus to a weekend ACC matchup against Virginia Tech, with the three-game series set to begin Friday at 7 p.m. at Mark Light Field. The game will be available on ACCNX and WVUM 90.5 FM.
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