ACC Standings (Rankings from Baseball America poll, April 22)
Atlantic Division
#6 NC State – 32-10 (14-7)
#10 Florida State – 31-9 (13-8)
#25 Clemson – 27-13 (13-8)
Wake Forest – 23-20 (7-14)
Maryland – 21-20 (6-15)
Boston College – 6-33 (0-20)
Coastal Division
#1 North Carolina – 39-2 (17-2)
#5 Virginia – 35-6 (16-5)
#20 Georgia Tech – 27-13 (11-10)
Miami – 27-16 (10-11)
Virginia Tech – 24-17 (9-12)
Duke – 22-20 (8-12)
Virginia 9, Florida State 2
Virginia 2, Florida State 0
Virginia 5, Florida State 2
Virginia made an early statement in their series sweep of Florida State. Seminole hurler Luke Weaver had allowed just seven earned runs this season, owning a 1.40 ERA … before the weekend. The Cavaliers tagged the freshman for seven runs and his first loss of the season in a 9-2 win.
Saturday’s pitcher’s duel paired Florida State’s Brandon Leibrandt against Virginia’s Scott Silverstein. The sophomore Leibrandt pitched eight innings, striking out seven batters and allowing four hits and two unearned runs. However, those unearned runs were the difference, as Silverstein and Kyle Crockett combined for a one-hit shutout of the Seminoles. Jared King was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI in the Sunday finale to lead Virginia to a 5-2 win.
NC State 13, Georgia Tech 4
NC State 6, Georgia Tech 2
NC State 8, Georgia Tech 7
Between a sweep of Georgia Tech and Florida State’s struggles against Virginia, NC State moved into first place in the Atlantic Division and extended its winning streak to 14 games. The weekend started with a dominant 13-4 win for the Wolfpack, behind six runs driven in by Tarran Senay. Senay was 3-for-6 with two doubles and a home run in the opener, the leading performance in his ACC Player of the Week run.
Trea Turner had a day to remember in the Saturday contest. The sophomore was 2-for-4 with two RBI and a solo home run in the eighth inning. If that wasn’t enough, Turner stole a base after an RBI single in the sixth inning, giving him 17 steals on the season and 74th of his career, enough to claim the title of leading base-stealer in NC State baseball history. NC State completed the sweep with an 8-7 win on Sunday, which included a Grant Clyde grand slam in the second inning and a two-run rally in the ninth to keep their winning streak alive.
North Carolina 7, Duke 1
North Carolina 4, Duke 1
North Carolina 10, Duke 1
North Carolina swept divisional rival Duke at home this weekend, setting the stage for a battle of division leaders riding hot streaks next weekend at NC State. The Tar Heels dominated, holding Duke to a .147 batting average and three runs during the series. UNC junior Kent Emanuel shined once again, going the distance Friday while striking out eight Blue Devils and allowing two hits and one run.
With the sweep coming one weekend after losing outfielder Skye Bolt to a broken foot, this alleviates some concerns that the Tar Heels might lose a step in his absence. Outfielders Chaz Frank, Brian Holberton, and Parks Jordan batted .441 with 12 RBI and seven runs, with four doubles and two home runs on the series.
Clemson 1, Miami 0
Miami 2, Clemson 1
Miami 7, Clemson 0
Clemson carried a winning streak of its own into the weekend, playing ten games without a loss. The Tigers extended that run for one more game before dropping back-to-back games in Coral Gables. The first two games were dominated by pitching. On Friday, Daniel Gossett (7.0 innings, 10 strikeouts, three hits, no runs) outdueled Christian Diaz (8.0 innings, seven strikeouts, four hits, one run) to give Clemson a 1-0 win. Bryan Radziewski returned the favor Saturday, pitching seven innings and allowing one run and two hits while striking out 10 Tigers.
However, Miami’s Andrew Suarez perhaps saved the best for last. In the rubber game of the series, the sophomore southpaw pitched a complete game shutout, allowing six hits and fanning six batters. Suarez earned ACC Pitcher of the Week for his efforts. Meanwhile, Miami’s offense tallied seven runs to carry the Hurricanes to the series-clinching victory.
Maryland 10, Virginia Tech 9
Virginia Tech 11, Maryland 0
Virginia Tech 3, Maryland 2
The Hokies had been swept in their last two ACC series, but bounced back with two wins
against Maryland to right the ship. The Terrapins opened the series with a 10-9 win, thanks to a walk-off two RBI single by outfielder Anthony Papio. Papio was 3-for-5 with a run and four RBI in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader.
Virginia Tech returned for the evening game of the twinbill with a strong showing. The Hokies racked up 11 runs on 16 hits, led by Mark Zagunis (3-for-5, two runs, three runs batted in, home run) and Brendon Hayden (2-for-4, two runs, three runs batted in, home run). Meanwhile, Joe Mantiply held Maryland scoreless over seven innings before giving the ball to Sean Kennedy to complete the shutout. Devin Burke picked up where Mantiply and Kennedy left off on Sunday, going the distance and allowing two runs on five hits in a 3-2 Hokies win.
Wake Forest 5, Boston College 1
Wake Forest 9, Boston College 2
Wake Forest 10, Boston College 9 (11 innings)
Wake Forest swept Boston College in Winston-Salem, extending the Eagles’ run of futility to 20 ACC baseball games in 2013 without a single victory. Wake Forest hurler Justin Van Grouw left little hope of Boston College ending the streak in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader. The senior pitched 8 2/3 innings, striking out five and allowing three hits and one run to lead Wake Forest to a 5-1 win. In Saturday’s second game, Pat Blair added four hits, two runs, and two RBI to his ledger to lead the Deacons to a 9-2 win.
Sunday’s finale offered a glimpse of promise for Boston College. The Eagles scored seven runs in the third inning to take an early 7-0 lead. However, Wake Forest responded with five scores of its own in the home half of the third. The game ultimately went to extra innings, tied at 9. In the 11th inning, Demon Deacon catcher Brett Armour singled to plate pinch runner Joey Rodriguez for the walk-off victory.
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