Tag: acc baseball

Duke baseball climbs two spots to sixth in latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

After their first road series victory over Virginia Tech in more than half a decade, the Blue Devils are on the verge of the top five in the rankings.

The Duke baseball team is closing in on the top five in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.

In the newest rankings released on Monday, the Blue Devils rose two spots to sixth in the rankings, just 43 points behind Kentucky for the fifth spot.

The jump follows a dramatic weekend on the road against Virginia Tech when Duke beat the Hokies in extra innings on Friday before overcoming a three-run deficit in the final three innings on Sunday. The Blue Devils hadn’t beaten the Hokies in Blacksburg since 2018.

Texas A&M, who is 35-5 for the season, remained atop the voting with 29 of 31 first-place votes. Arkansas and Tennessee came in second and third, respectively, with Clemson in fourth.

The No. 6 ranking is the same spot the Blue Devils finished at in the D1Baseball rankings published the same day.

After a Tuesday night game against Campbell, Duke welcomes No. 9 Florida State into Durham for a highly anticipated ACC battle.

Duke pitcher Charlie Beilenson named ACC Pitcher of the Week

Duke pitcher Charlie Beilenson named ACC Pitcher of the Week.

Duke pitcher Charlie Beilenson was named the ACC Pitcher of the Week on Monday.

The Blue Devils reliever went 2-0 and added a save in three appearances, and he did not allow any earned runs across 6.2 innings on the mound. Beilenson kept batters guessing, racking up 10 strikeouts in his three outings.

Against Virginia Tech on Friday, he pitched a season-high four innings, allowed just one hit, and struck out five Hokies. He did not allow a hit in his other two outings this past week, including a perfect inning during Sunday’s deciding game.

The Blue Devils won all three games he pitched in, once against Gardner-Webb and twice against Virginia Tech as they won the series.

Duke’s three wins last week moved the Blue Devils to 29-11 for the year and 13-8 in ACC play. D1Baseball had the team sixth in their latest ranking.

Notre Dame’s Carson Tinney caps big weekend with grand slam

What a weekend for him.

It’s not often that a baseball player has two home runs in one weekend that often are sought but rarely achieved. However, [autotag]Carson Tinney[/autotag] of Notre Dame now can make that claim forevermore. He began the Irish’s three-game weekend series vs. Boston College with a pinch-hit inside-the-park-home run.

If Tinney enjoyed his inside-the-parker, he had to enjoy what came two days later. With the Irish en route to their first no-hitter since 1988, Tinney contributed to the offensive cause with a four-bagger:

It’s heartwarming to see Tinney’s teammates emerge to celebrate his big moment with him. He isn’t one of the big bats on the team, but he sure fit the part during the Irish’s sweep of the Eagles. He was 3 of 4 with two homers and five RBIs. That gave him an otherworldly slugging percentage of 2.750.

When Tinney looks back on his career, he can say that for one weekend, he could hit dingers like the best of them.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Duke baseball takes first road series against Virginia Tech in six years after three dramatic games

The Blue Devils trailed Virginia Tech by three runs in the series-deciding Sunday game after six innings but roared back to win the weekend.

Duke baseball has finally won a series in Blacksburg.

For the first time in six years, the Blue Devils won at least two games on the road against Virginia Tech. They made sure to do so in the most dramatic way possible, too.

Both of the first two games took extra innings. The Blue Devils lept out to a 5-2 lead by the middle of the fifth inning on Friday thanks to a litany of hits and a solo shot by second baseman Zac Morris.

Duke ace Jonathan Santucci exited the game after a single and back-to-back walks to start the fifth inning, however, and the Hokies smelled blood in the water. Owen Proksch took over on the mound and struck out his first batter, but he walked his second to plate the first run. The next two Virginia Tech hits drove home three more runs, including a 2-RBI single from centerfielder Ben Watson to knot the game.

Hokies catcher Henry Cooke mashed a two-run homer in the sixth to pull ahead 8-6, and Duke seemed destined to let a four-run lead slip away. Instead, however, Logan Bravo and Ben Miller each tanked a solo home run in the eighth and ninth inning, respectively, to force extra innings.

Miller got the last laugh in the top of the 11th, too, with an RBI single to left field that produced the winning run. Duke took game one 9-8.

The Saturday sequel offered a lot fewer offensive fireworks. Miller picked up where he left off with an RBI double in the third, his third RBI of the weekend, and Cooke squared the game with a sacrifice fly in the next inning.

No other runs came across in regulation.

In the bottom of the 11th, with the game tied at 1-1, Bravo lived through every player’s nightmare. With two outs, the Hokies’ Christian Martin grounded the ball harmlessly to Duke shortstop Wallace Clark. Clark scooped it up and fired the ball to Bravo, and it smacked into the first baseman’s glove just in time for the out.

And then it popped out.

Bravo stared at the ball in disbelief as David McCann, who had been on third base, walked across for the winning run.

Bravo got his redemption on Sunday, however. The Hokies took a commanding lead after a five-run third inning, and Duke trailed by three runs in the deciding game. The first baseman took down the Saturday demons with a three-run shot to left-center in the bottom of the seventh, pulling Duke into a tie game.

After centerfielder Devin Obee robbed a potential Hokies home run in the bottom of the eighth, Duke mashed two home runs in the top of the ninth to cement the comeback. AJ Gracia sent his second of the day over the wall before Obee added an exclamation point to his heroism.

As a team, the Blue Devils hit 10 home runs between Friday and Sunday’s victories.

Duke, now 28-11 for the year and 12-8 against ACC opponents, takes on Campbell on Tuesday before a three-game home series against Florida State.

WATCH: Duke’s Devin Obee robs Virginia Tech’s potential go-ahead home run in the eighth

The Hokies looked like they struck a winning blow in the bottom of the eighth, but Duke centerfielder Devin Obee scaled the wall to keep it tied.

Duke’s Logan Bravo already etched his own hero moment with a game-tying three-run homer against Virginia Tech on Sunday, but the Blue Devils weren’t done wearing their capes.

In the bottom of the eighth, with the game tied at 10 runs apiece, the Hokies’ Carson DeMartini smashed a ball to straightaway center field. With a runner already on first base, it seemed like Virginia Tech found the blow that could end the three-game series.

Duke centerfielder Devin Obee had other ideas, however.

The junior raced all the way back to the warning track, lept into the air, and snatched the ball before it had a chance to disappear over the wall. In an instant, the Blue Devils went from potentially down two to needing one more out to escape the inning.

Escape the inning, they did, as Duke snagged the third and final out of the eighth inning before any other runs crossed the plate.

The Blue Devils eventually won the game, 13-10, to clinch their first series in Blacksburg in six years.

Notre Dame’s Carson Tinney hits inside-the-park home run

You’ll enjoy this.

One of the most exciting plays in baseball is the inside-the-park home run. It doesn’t happen very often, which is why people always yearn to see one whenever they go to a game. Those who attended Notre Dame’s game Friday against Boston College were lucky.

The Irish crushed the Eagles, 14-3, in seven innings, but one moment stood out above the rest. With the Irish already up big in the bottom of the sixth, [autotag]Carson Tinney[/autotag] was called on to pinch-hit for [autotag]Joey Spence[/autotag], who already had a home run in the game. Tinney is one of the lesser contributors on the team, but he crushed a pitch and had a moment he won’t ever forget:

With the victory, the Irish extended their hitting streak to three and got their record back to .500 at 18-18. Their ACC record remains paltry at 3-16, the exact record of the MLB-worst Chicago White Sox. Needless to say, this has been a trying season for the Irish, but moments like this will make it stand out a bit.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Schedule change for Clemson vs. Pitt baseball series

Clemson will play a doubleheader with Pitt Saturday due to the threat of inclement weather Sunday.

CLEMSON, S.C. – Due to forecasted inclement weather on Sunday, the series between Pittsburgh and Clemson at Doug Kingsmore Stadium is now scheduled to conclude with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. The second game of the doubleheader is scheduled to begin approximately 45 minutes after Saturday’s first game concludes. Game 1 of the series is still scheduled for today at 6 p.m.

Live video for all three games is available on ACC Network Extra. Both contests on Saturday are also still scheduled as nine-inning games.

Tickets for Saturday’s originally scheduled game are valid for the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader, while tickets for Sunday’s originally scheduled game are valid for the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader. The stadium will be cleared in between games on Saturday.

With the schedule change, the celebration of life of Doug Kingsmore will now take place on Saturday at approximately 12:40 p.m. on the field at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

WATCH: Erik Bakich and players discuss Clemson’s 7-0 shutout win over NC State

Clemson Baseball: Watch Tigers head coach Erik Bakich and freshmen Aidan Knaak and Jarren Purify talk about the team’s 7-0 victory over NC State on Sunday at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

Clemson is coming off its worst week of the 2024 season.

The Tigers (29-6 overall) dropped three of their four contests this past week, including two of three to ACC rival NC State over the weekend. Even so, coach Erik Bakich’s team managed to salvage the final game of its series against the Wolfpack with a 7-0 shutout victory on Sunday.

Clemson was backed by eight scoreless innings of two-hit ball from freshman right-hander Aidan Knaak, who has slowly developed into the team’s most reliable starter. Knaak struck out 10 batters and threw 97 pitches against NC State to improve to 3-0 on the season.

Through nine starts, Knaak now has a 2.87 ERA with a strikeout to walk ratio that’s just over 4-to-1 (67 strikeouts to 15 walks in 53 1/3 innings). He was named ACC Pitcher of the Week by the conference on Monday, marking the second consecutive week Knaak has earned that honor.

Jarren Purify was also responsible for helping the Tigers end their three-game losing streak in Sunday’s win. The freshman from Detroit went 2-for-4 and had two run-scoring hits, including an RBI double as part of a five-run seventh inning that broke a scoreless tie and put Clemson ahead for good. Purify raised his average to .266 through 29 games.

Here’s Bakich, Knaak and Purify talking to reporters after Sunday’s victory.

Clemson freshman Aidan Knaak named ACC Pitcher of the Week for second straight week

Clemson Baseball: Freshman right-hander Aidan Knaak took home ACC Pitcher of the Week honors, the league announced Monday. It’s the second week in a row that Knaak has earned the honor.

CLEMSON, S.C. – Freshman righthander Aidan Knaak (Fort Myers, Fla.) was named ACC Pitcher-of-the-Week, announced Monday by the league office. He joined Wake Forest’s Nick Kurtz, who was named ACC Player-of-the-Week, in receiving conference accolades. ACC baseball weekly honors are determined by a vote of a select media panel and are announced on Mondays throughout the regular season.

It marked the second week in a row Knaak earned ACC weekly honors. He became the first Tiger pitcher to earn ACC weekly honors twice in one year since 2016 (Pat Krall) and the first Tiger pitcher to earn ACC weekly honors in back-to-back weeks since 2005 (Josh Cribb).

Knaak pitched another masterpiece in Clemson’s 7-0 win over NC State on Sunday. In 8.0 innings pitched, he allowed just two hits (both infield singles), no runs and one walk with 10 strikeouts to earn the win. Knaak, who threw 97 pitches (71 strikes), faced just two batters over the minimum.

It was the longest outing of his career and tied his career high for strikeouts. He retired the first 14 batters of the game before surrendering an infield single in the fifth inning. He also did not allow a baserunner past second base and allowed only one past first base.

On the season, he is 3-0 with a 2.87 ERA, .201 opponents’ batting average and 67 strikeouts against 15 walks in 53.1 innings pitched over nine starts.

–via Clemson Athletic Communications

How far Clemson fell in new USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll

NCAA Baseball: The Clemson Tigers fell to No. 6 in the new USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll, released Monday, April 15.

A rough week by Clemson that featured the team’s first back-to-back losses of the season — and its first losing streak — dropped the Tigers several spots in the new USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll, released Monday, April 15.

Clemson (29-6 overall) tumbled four spots to No. 6 in the coaches poll, compiled by 31 head coaches at Division I schools. The Tigers went just 1-3 last week after a midweek loss to USC Upstate and dropping two of three in a series against NC State at home.

Coach Erik Bakich’s club also fell to No. 6 in D1Baseball’s new Top 25 rankings and to No. 4 in the new Baseball America Top 25.

Texas A&M (32-4) climbed two spots to No. 1 after a 4-0 week that included a series sweep of No. 12 Vanderbilt. The Commodores had been ranked No. 6 in last week’s coaches poll.

Arkansas (30-5) fell to No. 2 after suffering its first series loss of the season. The Razorbacks, who had been No. 1 for five straight weeks, fell Saturday and Sunday to No. 14 Alabama, which rose three spots in Monday’s poll.

Oregon State (29-5) moved up one spot in to No. 4. Kentucky (30-5) rounded out the top five after its three-game sweep of Auburn over the weekend.

Right behind Clemson in the new poll are four ACC schools. Florida State (30-5) rose to No. 7, with Virginia (28-8) checking in at No. 8 and Duke (26-10) at No. 9. North Carolina (29-7) moved up one spot to No. 11. East Carolina (27-8) rounded out the Top 10.

Two other ACC schools — No. 13 Wake Forest and No. 22 Virginia Tech — placed in Monday’s Top 25 to give the conference seven teams ranked in the new poll.

The SEC had the most schools ranked per conference with eight.

Clemson returns to the diamond Tuesday when the Tigers host Charlotte in non-conference play. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. EDT at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The game will be streamed on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX).