May 3, 2016
Hokies' rally comes up short at West Virginia
Tom Stoffel with two hits, two RBIs in 5-4 loss to Mountaineers
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Virginia Tech (15-31) 0000013004102
West Virginia (24-19) 11101100X580
  • Mon. County Ballpark - 1,217

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – In the program’s first trip to Morgantown since 2003, the Virginia Tech Hokies baseball team fell behind early as the West Virginia Mountaineers capitalized on several Hokie miscues. However, Tech mounted a late comeback that came up short and WVU took the game by a score of 5-4 on Tuesday night in nonconference action at Monongalia County Ballpark.

Tom Stoffel led Tech offensively with a two-hit night. His two-RBI single in the seventh finished off a three-run Hokie frame and pulled his team to within one at 5-4. He also singled with two outs in the ninth as Tech tried to get the equalizer.

West Virginia starter Braden Zarbnisky, one of seven Mountaineers to see action in the game, pitched four frames and struck out three to improve to 2-0 on the season, while Blake Smith picked up his sixth save. Nick Anderson (0-1), one of six Hokie hurlers to appear on the bump, went 4.1 innings and struck out six.

How the runs were scored

  • West Virginia (24-19) scored single runs in the first, second and third to open a 3-0 lead – two of which were unearned. Ivan Vera plated Kyle Davis with a single in the first. Jimmy Galusky knocked in Caleb Potter with a sacrifice fly in the second (unearned). Darius Hill crossed home in the third on balk (unearned).
  • Jackson Cramer put the Mountaineers up 4-0 with a solo home run in the fifth frame.
  • Tech (15-31) scored its first run in the top of the sixth when the team loaded the bases with one out on three straight walks – drawn by Garrett Hudson, Tom Stoffel and Phil Sciretta. With two outs, Sam Fragale singled home Hudson to make it 4-1.
  • Hill gave his team the four-run lead back with an RBI grounder in the sixth that scored Galusky, which was also unearned.
  • The Hokies rallied in the seventh for three runs, with Matt Dauby and Rahiem Cooper hitting back-to-back singles to leadoff the frame before Saige Jenco walked to load the bases. Hudson plated Dauby with a grounder and Stoffel knocked home the other two with a single to make it a one-run game at 5-4.

Inside the Box

  • Jenco: run scored, team-high 31st of the season, 98th of his Tech career.
  • Stoffel: 2 RBIs, 10th multi-RBI game of the season, 12th of his career; 2 hits, ninth multi-hit game of the season, 15th of his career.
  • Sciretta: one single, team-high 60th hit of the season.
  • Freiday, Jr.: double, fifth of the season, 10th of his career.
  • Dauby: 2 hits, 10th multi-hit game of the season, 18th of his career.
  • Anderson: career-high 4.1 IP (previous high 3.0, at Liberty, April 26, 2016); career-high six strikeouts (previous high 3, vs. William & Mary, April 5, 2016).

Up next

Tech, off this week from ACC action, will welcome Alcorn State to Blacksburg for a three-game series that starts on Saturday with a doubleheader. First pitch of the first game at English Field at Union Park is scheduled for 4 p.m.

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