In his first home game at English Field at Union Park as the Virginia Tech head coach, John Szefc saw his team battle back to tie the contest with Radford in the bottom of the ninth and then register the walk-off three frames later as Tech defeated the Highlanders 3-2 in 12 innings Tuesday.
Jack Owens sent Tech fans home happy as he executed a squeeze play with runners on the corners and one out. Darian Jacoby, who walked to open the inning and moved to second on Cam Irvine’s sac bunt, got to third on a Stevie Mangrum single before scoring the game winner.
The Hokies (3-5) took a 1-0 lead in the second on an RBI single by Nick Menken that scored Luke Horanski, who reached on a double.
Radford (3-5) answered in the third with an unearned run and took a 2-1 lead in the fifth on Straton Podaras’ RBI single that plated Luke Belanger.
Runs were at a premium over the next four innings, with both teams stranding numerous runners, until Tech tied the game in the ninth. Sam Fragale led off with a double, moved to third on a Horanski deep fly to center and scored with two outs on a wild pitch.
For Tech, Graham Seitz picked up his first collegiate win after tossing a scoreless 12th with two strikeouts. Nic Enright got the start on the mound and went 3.0 innings with two strikeouts, while Joey Sullivan (2.1IP/3K) and Andrew McDonald (4.2IP/5K) kept the Highlanders off the board over a combined seven frames.
This was the 59thh meeting between the two schools, as Tech owns a 45-14 record overall and 25-3 in Blacksburg. This was also the third straight win for the Hokies over Radford.
This was Tech’s longest game, in terms of innings, since a 4-3 win in 12 innings versus Clemson in Blacksburg on March 22, 2015.
The Hokies turned two double plays in the game and now have eight this season.
The Hokies head to DeLand, Florida for their next five games – starting with the Westin Lake Mary Stetson Invitational – before they host their ACC home opener next Friday. The invite starts this Friday, March 2 against Stetson at Melching Field at Conrad Park with first pitch set for 7 p.m.
–VT Athletics
