Virginia Tech defeated No. 5 Georgia Tech, 9-6, on March 8 after scoring six unanswered runs in the Atlantic Coast Conference series finale at Mac Nease Baseball Park at Russ Chandler Stadium.
The win ended a six-game losing streak for Virginia Tech and marked its first victory of the season against a ranked opponent. The Hokies’ offense produced a season-high 14 hits, with nine different players contributing.
Sam Grube led Virginia Tech by going three-for-three with a double and three RBIs. Grube’s bases-loaded line drive in the seventh inning brought home two insurance runs before play was halted by a weather delay lasting nearly two hours. Preston Crowl pitched the final three innings for the Hokies, retiring all nine batters he faced and striking out four.
Freshman Ethan Ball recorded his seventh multi-hit game of the year and delivered a key two-RBI double during Virginia Tech’s three-run sixth inning. Hudson Lutterman followed with a game-tying single to even the score at 6-6. Luke Craytor earned the win after shutting down Georgia Tech in the sixth inning with two strikeouts.
Starting pitcher Griffin Stieg held Georgia Tech to four runs over four innings while recording five strikeouts. Despite home runs from Ryan Zuckerman and Vahn Lackey that gave Georgia Tech an early lead, Virginia Tech’s pitching staff combined for twelve strikeouts and kept their opponents scoreless after the fifth inning.
Virginia Tech will next face Virginia in the Commonwealth Clash presented by Smithfield, beginning Friday, March 13 at Davenport Field at Disharoon Park.
