Baseball: Miami storms back for 6-5 win in ACC opener

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Posted on Friday, Mar. 8, 2024, 10:00 pm

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Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Photo: UVA Athletics

Miami trailed by as many as four runs and a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh by Daniel Cuvet completed the 6-5 comeback win over No. 13 Virginia on Friday at Alex Rodriguez Park. All six runs scored by the Hurricanes were unearned.

Virginia starting pitcher Cullen McKay took a no-hitter into the fifth inning and struck out a career-high, eight batters in a no-decision. The only two runners to reach over the first four innings were two-out walks in the second and the third innings. McKay pitched 5.2 innings and exited with two outs and the bases loaded in the sixth.

At the plate for UVA, Anthony Stephan went 3 for 5 with a double, a run scored and an RBI. Sophomore Harrison Didawick homered for the third-straight game, a two-run shot in the second inning and finished 2 for 3 with two runs scored and two RBI.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Didawick followed a Casey Saucke leadoff single in the second inning with a towering opposite field blast that gave UVA (12-2, 0-1 ACC) the initial 2-0 advantage. The long ball was his team-leading sixth of the season.

Stephan was responsible for the next two Cavalier runs, scoring on a Hurricane throwing error in the fourth and later plated Eric Becker from third when he beat out an infield single in the sixth.

The Hurricanes (8-5, 1-0) capitalized on a UVA fielding error in the sixth that eventually allowed three runs to score. Two of the three runs came on a two-out double by Jack Scanlon and made it a 4-3 ballgame.

Becker redeemed himself after the fielding miscue with a two-out double to right center, putting UVA up by two runs, 5-3 in the top of the seventh.

Miami responded in the bottom of the seventh with the three-run homer by Cuvet that gave the Hurricanes the lead for the first time. All three runs were unearned after a Cavalier error earlier in the frame.

Didawick led off the ninth with a single to right field, advanced to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on the ground out by Jacob Ference for the first out. Miami reliever Nick Robert got the final two outs of the frame, stranding the tying run on third base.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

  • Saucke’s single in the second inning extended his reached base streak to 22 games, a streak that includes last year’s NCAA postseason run.
  • Cavalier pitchers surrendered just five hits, the fewest in a loss since allowing three base knocks in a 2-0 setback against Florida State on March 5, 2021.
  • Ethan Anderson and Stephan have reached base in all 14 games this season.
  • The last Virginia player to homer in three consecutive games was Jake Gelof last season, who left the yard in five-straight contests from April 9-15.
  • The Cavaliers have dropped seven-straight road games against Miami and had their three-game win streak against the Hurricanes snapped.

UP NEXT

The three-game ACC series at Miami continues on Saturday. The Cavaliers will have LHP Evan Blanco (1-0) on the mound and he will be opposed by Hurricane lefty Rafe Schlesinger (2-0). First pitch on ACCNX and WINA is scheduled for 6 p.m. in Coral Gables.