A relentless nine-run rally fueled by fundamental hitting propelled the Miami Hurricanes past the Louisville Cardinals, reclaiming momentum in the ACC standings through a dominant display of team-wide execution.
Coral Gables, FL. – The Miami Hurricanes baseball program found itself in need of playing with great urgency in the final home series against the Louisville Cardinals. After losing two of three games against the North Carolina State Wolfpack, the team fell to fifth in the Atlantic Coast Conference standings. The Florida State Seminoles surpassed and currently hold the final double-bye slot in the ACC Tournament.
Coach J.D. Arteaga would need a well-balanced performance from both the pitching staff and batters to make up for lost ground. Left-handed senior pitcher Rob Evans was set to start on the mound and junior third baseman was still sidelined due to a back stress fracture injury.
Regardless, the Hurricanes still had a game to play. After Evans struck out two batters swinging, first baseman sophomore Tague Davis hit a single, then went to third base after catcher junior Jimmy Nugent reached on an error, ending up at second, committed by junior shortstop Vance Sheahan. The Cardinals would score the first two runs of the game as right fielder sophomore Griffin Crain hit a double to left field.
Evans managed to strike out third baseman senior Bayram Hot and prevent further damage. The Hurricanes immediately had an opportunity to score after second baseman senior Jake Ogden hit a triple deep to center field. Left fielder redshirt senior Max Galvin grounded out to second, giving the team its first run before the first inning ended.
Both teams faced sincere pitching, as only two total runners were left on base between the second and fourth innings. Evans and Cardinals starting left-handed pitcher senior Wyatt Danilowicz were retiring batter after batter. However, the game completely flipped at the start of the fifth.
After three Cardinals batters were quickly put away, the Hurricanes went on to dominate by scoring nine runs without any home runs. It tied for the biggest inning in an ACC game this season, with the previous happening against the Virginia Tech Hokies on April 3. The Hurricanes faced four pitchers before entering the sixth, when the score became 10-2.
The game seemed put away until junior designated hitter Ben Slanker hit a grand slam at the top of the eighth off left-handed pitcher Jake Dorn.
The Hurricanes have blown leads in the past, but prevented any repeat of bad history, closing the game with a 13-8 victory. Coach Arteaga was pleased by the team playing fundamental baseball rather than attempting to do too much.
“We get caught up in trying to make up for guys that are missing,” he said. “Guys that aren’t swinging the bat the way they were swinging the bat early in the season. We get in a rhythm there where I call it ‘throwing jabs,’ and not so many haymakers, going for the fences. Another game we score a bunch of runs and no home runs. Me personally, I like that. That means it was a team effort. We kept the line moving, kept pressure on their defense and their pitchers. We got some big hits when we needed them. It’s always exciting.”
The Hurricanes will have another late-night outing against the Cardinals on Saturday, 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time at Mark Light Field.
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