BC BASEBALL: Hokies beat Eagles 4-3 For The Sweep

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BC BASEBALL: Rapp Strikes Out Eight but Hokies Walk Off with Win
Alu paces Eagles with 2-for-3 day

Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Interview (VIDEO)

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Virginia Tech 4, Boston College 3 (10 innings)
Records: Boston College (8-17, 1-11 ACC) at Virginia Tech (17-13, 6-6 ACC)
Location: English Field at Union Park in Blacksburg, Va.
Series: VT wins the series, 3-0

BC HIGHLIGHTS

Junior Brian Rapp matched his career highs from one week ago, throwing seven innings and striking out eight. He allowed five hits, two walked and two runs. After giving up two hits in the first inning he did not allow another until the sixth.

Senior Michael Strem turned in two doubles on the day, bringing his career total to 54, good for second all-time in BC record books.

Sophomore Jake Alu led the Eagles at the plate with a 2-for-3 day. He drove in a run and extended his career-long hit streak to five games.

Freshman Jack Cunningham also extended his career-long hit streak to give games with an infield single in the ninth. He scored

Junior Donovan Casey tallied three hits for the first time this season. He leads the team with 10 multiple-hit games. He also drove in a run for the Eagles.

KEY PLAYS

With the Eagles leading by one in the ninth, Ryan Tufts doubled off Casey to tie the game.

In the bottom of the 10^th, the Hokies loaded the bases with two outs and Jack Owens hit a single for the walk-off win.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Hokies scored one in the first to take an early lead. They started the inning with back-to-back singles and both runners moved up on a groundout to second. Sam Fragale hit a sacrifice fly to center to plate the first run of the game. Rapp got a fly ball to end the inning.

VT took a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Rapp hit the first two batters before he got a strikeout for the first out. Both runners moved into scoring position on a double steal. Raheim Cooper hit a sac fly to right to bring home the runner from third.

The Eagles got one back in the fourth as Strem led off with a double, Bigras drew a one-out walk and Alu plated Strem with a double of his own. The Eagles loaded the bases with another walk but VT starter Kit Scheetz got two shallow fly balls to hold BC at one.

The Eagles tied the game at two in the eighth with heads up base running. Sophomore Gian Martellini knocked one through the six hole for a one-out base hit and moved to second on a chopper to first. Sophomore Dominic Hardaway came in to pitch run and headed to third on a wild pitch ball four with Alu at the plate. Alu took off for second and catcher Joe Freiday Jr. threw down, allowing Hardaway to score the tying run.

The Eagles took the lead in the ninth. Cunningham led off the inning by beating out an infield single put the go-ahead run on. Classmate Brian Dempsey moved him over with a sac bunt and Casey drove him in with a single to left. Casey was thrown out trying to take second and a chopper to first ended the BC ninth.

The Hokies tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with Casey on the hill. After a ground out, Freiday Jr. singled and Grant Maiorana came in to pinch run. Casey got a pop up for the second out but Owens singles and Tufts doubled to score Maiorana, tying the game. A walk loaded the bases but Casey got a strikeout swinging to send the game to extra innings.

With one down in the 10^th, Casey hit Mac Caples to put the winning run on. He got the next batter swinging to put two outs on the board. Sophomore RHP John Witkowski came into the game and walked the first batter he faced. He got a slow roller to short, but senior Johnny Adams couldn’t get a handle on the ball, allowing all runners to reach safely. Owens singled through the right side to plate Caples as the game-winning run.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

Strem was the third Eagle to tally two doubles in a game. Junior Mitch Bigras did so at Louisville on March 18 and Alu recorded two against Massachusetts on March 29.

Adams’ 10-game on-base streak ended. It was third longest on-base streak of the season for the Eagles.

The Eagles fell in their first extra innings game of the year. It was the third time BC was walked off in 2017.

Virginia Tech increased its all-time series lead to 24-17 and has won the last 12 games in Blacksburg.

UP NEXT
The Eagles will travel to Worcester on Tuesday, April 4 to play Holy Cross at 4:35 p.m.