Virginia Tech baseball looks to rebound from brutal loss to Miami

After a two-week break from their ACC schedule, the Virginia Tech baseball team looked to turn around their conference fortunes in their final home series of the 2024 season. Facing a Miami team that entered the weekend at 8-16 in the conference, things didn't start out as well as head coach John Szefc and the Hokies would have liked.

Miami scored four first-inning runs before Virginia Tech battled back to take a 6-5 sixth-inning lead, but the Hurricanes scored one run in the seventh and two in the ninth to pick up an 8-6 win to open the three-game weekend series.

What made the loss even more difficult was the way it happened in the top of the ninth in a 6-6 game. Jacoby Long hit a pop-up that was dropped by the Hokies giving Miami's leadoff batter another chance and he took full advantage. A couple of pitches later, he blasted a game-winning home run, which was followed by Daniel Cuvet's second of the game later in the inning to account for the 8-6 final.

Virginia Tech battled back like they have all season, with the long ball. Gehrig Ebel launched a two-run shot in the fourth to cut the deficit to 4-3 before Carson DeMartini had a solo home run to tie the game. Ebel added his second of the game in the sixth for a 6-5 lead.

Virginia Tech loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning in a 6-6 game, but a failed bunt attempt ran the Hokies into an out, followed by a strikeout to end the frame before Miami plated two with the long ball in the ninth.

The two teams will square off in Game 2 of the weekend series on Saturday night before the series final on Sunday. We will find out a lot about Virginia Tech's resolve as they look to bounce back in a series where anything less than two out of three games would be disappointing.