By the time he stepped into the batter's box in the top of the first inning of Virginia Tech's series-deciding game at Louisville, Hokies' third baseman Carson DeMartini already had himself a terrific weekend.
The junior from Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach had slammed two home runs the day before in Tech's 12-6 victory over the Cardinals. It had marked the second time in less than a week that DeMartini had a multi-home run game, having crushed two long balls in Tech's game against Marist five days earlier.
As DeMartini dug against Louisville starting pitcher Patrick Forbes in the top of the first, there was intense focus coming from both dugouts. Tech had not won a series at Louisville since 1995, when both teams were in the Metro Conference.
For the record, the Cardinals have become one of sports' biggest winners—five College World Series appearances under head coach Dan McDonnell—and they rarely lose at home, winning 31 of 40 home series since joining the ACC. Nationally, only LSU and Vanderbilt have won more baseball games than Louisville over the last 17 years, so winning a series in Derby Town is tough.
But against Forbes, 2022 Mr. Baseball in Kentucky, the Hokies turned this crucial ACC contest at Patterson Stadium into a game of home run derby.
DeMartini blasted a one-out home run to give the Hokies the early lead. Senior first baseman Gehrig Ebel socked the first pitch of the second inning out of the yard, doubling the Hokies' lead to 2-0. In the third, DeMartini and Eddie Micheletti both connected on solo bombs, giving Tech a 4-0 advantage.
In the fourth inning, DeMartini led off by driving a ball down the right-field line for his third homer of the game and his fifth at Louisville in less than 24 hours.
Coupled with a tremendous start from sophomore pitcher Griffin Stieg, the Hokies rolled to an 8-1 win that gave Tech the series win and its best start ever in ACC play.
"I didn't know how good we could be this year, to be honest," head coach John Szefc told me this week. "I thought we could be pretty good, but until you start playing with other people, you don't really know."
The unknown: Nobody on Tech's pitching staff had ever started an ACC game before this season. "We had three new starters, and then we lost our starting first baseman (slugger Garrett Michel), so we just weren't sure."
The known: "We had some good arms and an explosive offense," Szefc said.
Now, midway through the season, the Hokies sit atop the ACC and find themselves ranked in the top-15 of the major polls. They have Tech fans thinking back to 2022, when the Hokies finished 45-14, won the Coastal Division, and hosted NCAA Regionals and a Super Regional at English Field. That year, Tech was ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation.
As for this year? Tech's coach points to four things:
"Our starting pitching has been very consistent," Szefc said. Steig, Wyatt Parliament, and freshman Brett Renfrow give Tech a terrific trio for the weekend ACC series. Overall, Virginia Tech is in the top four of nearly every pitching category in the ACC.
"Our offense has been very explosive," and the "Hammerin' Hokies" vibe has returned. Virginia Tech leads the ACC in home runs and slugging percentage and is among the national leaders in both categories as well.
"Third, I think we play better defense than some of the other teams we've had, which is important. And I do think we have some guys who will play professional baseball at a high level," Szefc said.
Gallery: (3-26-2024) BSB: Marshall Game
One of those, of course, is DeMartini, whom Szefc calls "the face of our program."
"He's been here three years, and he knows what we're about. He was part of our '22 team, and he's managing expectations very well. He was the National Player of the Week (after the Louisville series), and everyone looks to him, but he's just the same. He has 30 (scouts) watching his every move before every game, in batting practice to the dugout, and he's handling it great."
But this is hardly a one-man team. Szefc raved about leadoff man Christian Martin, the Hokies' second baseman from Amherst.
"He's overlooked," Szefc said. "He's a quality leadoff hitter, gets on base for us, and defensively can really turn the double play."
With Ben Watson, Chris Cannizzaro, Clay Grady, and Micheletti, the Hokies have a lineup that's been smokin' the first half of the season.
But the ACC is rugged. Half the league is ranked among the top 20, and Tech's schedule is backloaded. "We sure didn't make the schedule," Szefc joked.
For Hokie fans, there should be great confidence in the man calling the shots in Tech's dugout. Szefc has won everywhere he's been. And, by all accounts, Tech's seventh-year head coach is a throwback. He's a true baseball guy. And his players gravitate to him.
"I grew up in the 70's, and we recruit players who fit our culture. Our structure," he said.
"We stress important things like 'keep on time' and we keep the locker room clean. That's important to me. We work on how to wear a uniform.
"Things like that, they used to be a big staple in baseball.
"It's a balance. You want the kids to have fun, and they do, but we hold everyone to a higher standard."
Of course, he wants to recruit the best possible players to Tech, and Szefc said, "Our core players are Virginia guys. We have access here to high-level players."
Like every coach, NIL is a growing concern in recruiting, especially in a conference like the ACC.
"And our league is going to get better," he said. "Stanford has been to the World Series a bunch (18 times), and this year, Cal has a good team. ACC baseball got better with those two teams coming in for baseball (SMU does not compete in baseball), and that will be a nice trip for our players."
"We have guys who have never been to Boston or Miami, and now they'll get to experience those cities and Northern California too. We've brought in two more good programs. Changing time zones will be challenging for our guys, but overall, it was good for baseball in the ACC."
As for 2024, the Hokies have the look of a very solid team. Solid pitching, terrific defense, and some serious lumber in the lineup too.
The Hammerin' Hokies are back, this time with a sledgehammer. That should make for an exciting spring at English Field, for sure.