BLACKSBURG – Coming off its three-game sweep of Boston College that extended its best ACC start to date, the No. 13 Virginia Tech baseball team returns to English Field at Atlantic Union Bank Park for consecutive conference home stands against Pitt (March 28-30) and No. 12 Wake Forest (April 5-7).
Sporting an 11-1 record at home this season, Tech puts its seven-game winning streak on the line this week against Pitt with a trio of 4 p.m. game times against the Panthers between Thursday (March 28) and Saturday (March 30). After returning its home-and-home midweek series with Marshall in Huntington, West Virginia, this coming Tuesday (April 2), the Hokies will prepare for a potential top-20 matchup against Wake Forest, featuring a pair of primetime contests on Friday (April 5) and Saturday (April 6).
Virginia Tech pulls back into Blacksburg riding its best 23-game start (19-4) since joining the ACC prior to the 2005 season. The Hokies have won 17 of their last 19 games, flexing a 13-2 record during the month of March.
Entering Thursday's series opener against Pitt, Tech possesses the best ACC winning percentage in the conference (.889), leading the Coastal Division by one game ahead of second-place [No. 14] North Carolina, two games ahead of third-place [No. 9] Virginia and three games ahead of fourth-place Miami.
Dominant on both sides of the ball, Virginia Tech's pitching staff and lineup pack a powerful one-two punch towards opponents. Veteran outfielder Ben Watson witnessed his 18-game hitting streak come to an end on Tuesday against Marshall while the emergence of closer Jordan Little has supported well-tailored weekend starts by Brett Renfrow, Wyatt Parliament and Griffin Stieg.
Offensively, junior third baseman Carson DeMartini continues to rake for the "Hammerin' Hokies," ranking in a tie for sixth nationally in home runs (13). Sophomore catcher Henry Cooke paces the club in batting average with his .413 clip while power bats Eddie Micheletti Jr. (nine home runs), Chris Cannizzaro (six), David McCann (five) and Christian Martin (four) have risen Tech's home run tally to 58 – the third best mark among NCAA Division I programs.
Arriving in Blacksburg, Pitt is looking to redeem itself after being swept last weekend by then-No. 14 Virginia. Coupled with Tuesday's defeat at Penn State, the Panthers have lost four straight games and six of their last seven contests overall, but stroll into English Field with something to prove against the ranked Hokies.