UM bats too much for Eagles
Hurricanes outscore Boston College 35-13 in series
For the second time in as many weekends, the University of Miami baseball team had its three game weekend series shortened to two on account of rain. Miami was scheduled to play Boston College on Sunday afternoon when a torrential downpour left much of Mark Light Field under water.
The teams waited for about an hour before calling the game when it was determined that field condition and Boston College travel plans would not allow the teams to fit in the final game of the series.
The ‘Canes were looking for a three game sweep of the Eagles after winning Friday night’s game and dominating Saturday night’s game 17-5 in front of 2,402 fans at Mark Light Stadium.
Saturday, Miami improved to 19-4 on the season after a balanced team effort.
Miami starting pitcher Vince Bongiovanni recorded his fourth win of the season going 5.1 innings, giving up six hits and three earned runs while striking out six and walking four.
“I thought it was a good game for us,” head coach Jim Morris said. “First of all we played good defense and (Vince) Bongiovanni threw well. We swung the bat well and a lot of guys got hits. I thought it was a complete team effort.”
Bongiovanni had all the run support he needed as the Hurricanes tallied a 13-run cushion before the Miami sophomore was chased in the top of the sixth. Prior to his exit, Bongiovanni had thrown five innings of shutout baseball.
The Hurricane offense was led by sophomore Richard Giannotti who has been on a tear lately since returning from a shoulder injury. Giannotti was a triple short of the cycle as he went 3-3 on the day, while driving in four runs and scoring two.
In addition to Giannotti’s offensive barrage, second baseman Adam Ricks and outfielder Brian Barton each had two RBIs. Ricks and Barton both transferred to UM from California schools with the intent to put up big numbers as Hurricane starters this season. The ‘Canes relied on a full team effort that included eight other players driving in a run.
The Hurricanes never allowed the Eagles to get close and helped their cause by not committing an error.
The ‘Canes were not as dominant Friday night but with the help of some Boston College miscues and one big inning, Miami exploded for an 18-8 win in front of 2,117 fans at the Light.
Three Miami errors helped keep the Eagles close at 9-8 until the Hurricanes broke open the game with a nine run, five hit eight inning to take an 18-8 lead. Boston College pitching imploded during the inning, aiding the UM assault by issuing two walks and hitting three batsmen.
“I thought we looked good, swung well and put up a bunch of runs,” Morris said. “And number one we got a win. Our guys got it done when it counted.”
‘Canes third baseman Gaby Sanchez led the offense going 4-5 with three RBIs.
Hurricane relief pitcher Marcelo Albir picked up his first win as a Hurricane with the victory.
After going 4-0 this week, Miami now travels to Homestead tomorrow night to take on Harvard before coming back to Mark Light Stadium for a three game series against the second ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
Ryan Ellis can be reached at msgnyc@yahoo.com.