BLACKSBURG – A day after needing some late-game heroics, the Virginia Tech baseball team again jumped up early on the visiting Richmond Spiders and used seven scoreless innings thrown by its bullpen to cruise to a 10-1 victory on Wednesday afternoon at English Field at Union Park.
With the victory, the Hokies swept the midweek series with their in-state rival and improved to 11-5 on the season, including a 7-2 mark at home. The win also evened the all-time series with Richmond to 72-72-2.
The Spiders (8-4) actually scored the game's first run, using three hits in the top half of the first inning to take a 1-0 lead. Sage Bruhl's two-out RBI single plated D.J. Lee for his team's lone run.
Tech responded in the home half by sending nine Hokies to the plate, despite Richmond starter Garrett Aylor retiring the first two batters. With two outs, Tech loaded the bases on a hit-by-pitch for Luke Horanski, a single off the bat of Kevin Madden and a walk drawn by Nick Biddison.
Tanner Thomas followed with a two-RBI single and Nick Owens plated two more with a double to make it 4-1. Owens would later come around on a fielding error to give Tech a four-run advantage.
Hokie starter Nolan Wilson tossed a scoreless second inning, before Tech used four relievers to finish the off game. Ryan Okuda (4.1 IP/3 K) and Ryan Metz (1.2/4 K) took the contest into the ninth, where Dillon Larsen (one out) and Jack Goonan, who made his Tech debut, closed it out with a pair of strikeouts.
Biddison hit the first home run of his Hokie career, a solo shot, in the fifth, and Tech added four runs in the eighth, with Thomas plating two and Biddison and Owens one each, to provide the home team's final margin.
Up Next
Tech returns to the road and to ACC action as the Hokies travel to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for a three-game league series with the Panthers at Charles L. Cost Field. Game 1 is set for Friday at 3 p.m., as is Game 2 on Saturday, while Sunday is a 1 p.m. first pitch.