Coming down the stretch of the regular season, the Virginia Tech baseball team went on a bit of a heater, racking up series wins. Those series wins allowed the Hokies to finish 15-15 in the ACC after a dreadful start with series losses to Georgia Tech and Virginia on the road.
However, instead of going down the drain like they did the last couple of days, Virginia Tech racked up series wins and now, entering the ACC Tournament as the No. 7 seed and avoiding playing on the first day on Tuesday, they are trending toward an NCAA Tournament berth.
That is not a given, and a win on Wednesday night in the second round of the conference tournament might go a long way toward locking up a berth when the 64-team field is announced on Memorial Day.
Virginia Tech to face Notre Dame in second round of ACC Tournament on Wednesday
After sliding up to the seventh seed after taking two out of three last weekend over Clemson at home, the Hokies awaited the winner of the third game on opening day in Charlotte between the same Tigers and Notre Dame. Clemson needed to win the ACC Tournament to get an NCAA Tournament berth, and head coach Erik Bakich tinkered with his pitching in Blacksburg. That move did not pay off after the Irish edged the Tigers, 5-4, to advance to play the Hokies at 5 p.m. EST on the ACC Network.
Virginia Tech coach John Szefc knew what he would be getting in Clemson, but playing Notre Dame is an opponent that the Hokies did not play this season. That leaves some unknowns for both teams. However, Virginia Tech got to scout the Irish against Clemson, and the top of the order is a group that's going to be feared. The first five batters went a combined 8-for-19 with three solo home runs.
Notre Dame is like Virginia Tech, entering the ACC Tournament looking to improve their chances of making the NCAA Tournament. A win for either team would do wonders to not sweat out the weekend until the selection show. A loss will make for a long five days for one team.
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