Clemson’s pitching did an admirable job of keeping Georgia Tech off balance in Friday’s extra-inning loss to the Yellow Jackets. On Saturday, GT found its footing. The black and gold scored in each of the first six innings to blow out the Tigers 16-3 at Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta. The win clinched the series for Georgia Tech, improving them to 16-7 overall and 5-3 in the ACC. The Tigers fell to 14-10 on the season and 1-4 in conference play.
The Yellow Jackets wasted no time in getting their offense untracked, scoring five times in their first at-bat. That snapped a streak of twelve consecutive games in which the Tigers had not allowed a first-inning run. From there, the onslaught was on as the Jackets collected nineteen hits and posted crooked numbers in four different innings.
Benjamin Blackwell and Caden Grice provided the only offense for the Tigers, as each smashed a home run. Blackwell’s solo-shot in the second inning was his first long ball of the season. Meantime, Grice blasted his third round-tripper of the year with a two-run shot in the top of the third. However, that wasn’t nearly enough, as virtually every player in uniform for Georgia Tech got in on the hit parade, especially centerfielder Jake DeLeo. The lead-off hitter was 4-for-5 on the day with two home runs, two doubles, three RBIs, and four runs scored.
Yellow Jacket starter Luke Schmolke improved to 3-0 on the season after working five solid innings, allowing six hits, three runs, and three walks with five strikeouts. His counterpart, Tristan Smith (0-1) took the loss, giving up six runs on four hits in just an inning and a third.
The series wraps up Sunday at 1pm.
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