For the second Friday in a row, Duke’s baseball team handed a loss to a top-10 team.
This time, it took place in Durham as Duke opened up its ACC home slate with a decisive 5-2 win over the 10th-ranked Clemson Tigers.
Duke ace Jonathan Santucci was razor-sharp as he bounced back from a short-lived showing against Wake Forest last Friday evening. He didn’t make it through three innings in his previous start, but he tossed five innings of two-run ball against Clemson.
The game started rocky after a fielding error allowed Clemson’s best player and future first-round draft pick, outfielder Cam Cannarella, to reach first. A wild pitch and some productive hitting got him to third before a single by third baseman Blake Wright scored him to give the Tigers an early 1-0 lead.
In the bottom frame, Duke responded loudly. With one out, a Ben Miller walk and a single by Alex Stone set the stage for Harvard transfer Logan Bravo to hammer a 2-0 pitch from Clemson starter Austin Gordon to right center for a three-run homer, giving the Blue Devils a lead they would never relinquish the rest of the game.
Santucci, from there, would settle down. He pitched two scoreless innings, racking up more strikeouts using his fastball, changeup, and slider in perfect unison.
In the bottom of the third, Bravo added more insurance, ripping a line drive to left field for his second homer of the game, giving Duke a 4-1 lead.
Clemson’s Blake Wright responded with a home run at the top of the fourth to cut Duke’s lead to two runs, but Santucci avoided further damage after maneuvering through a bit of trouble with two runners on.
The Blue Devils’ star pitcher would end his day in the fifth after getting Wright to fly out to right field. He finished with 11 strikeouts, three walks, and two runs allowed (one earned) on 96 pitches through his five innings pitched.
A Macon Winslow home run gave Duke its fifth and final run of the evening, pushing it ahead 5-2. Winslow finished his day three-for-three with a walk.
From there, Duke’s bullpen held down the fort as Owen Proksch pitched 1.1 innings and paved the way for Duke’s do-it-all reliever Charlie Beilenson to close the game with 2.2 innings of work for his eighth save of the season.
Duke held the Tigers to the second-fewest runs they’ve scored in a game all season.
The Blue Devils will lace their cleats back up and get ready to try and secure a series win tomorrow as the two teams get set for game two.
First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.