May 13, 2005
ATLANTA – Lee Hyde and Brad Rulon combined on a four-hit shutout as Tyler Greene and Whit Robbins hit home runs to lead No. 5 Georgia Tech (35-14, 19-6 ACC) to a 10-0 win over Virginia Tech (20-24, 5-16) in the opener of a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series on Friday night at Russ Chandler Stadium.
The Yellow Jackets remained in first place in the ACC regular season standings, ahead of Miami (18-6-1 / def. Virginia 7-6 on Friday night), North Carolina (15-7-1 / lost to Florida State, 4-9), Florida State (16-9) and Clemson (16-9 / def. Wake Forest, 4-1). Georgia Tech reduced its “magic number” to clinch the regular season title to five over Miami, three over North Carolina, and two over Florida State and Clemson.
Hyde (7-2) pitched seven innings and held the Hokies scoreless on four hits and four walks. The left-hander allowed just one runner to advance past first base over the first seven innings before running into trouble in the eighth.
Rulon, who worked out of a no-out, bases-loaded jam in the eighth, pitched two scoreless innings to close out the game.
“Anytime you don’t give up any runs and only give the other team four hits, that’s great work,” said Georgia Tech head coach Danny Hall. “I was very happy to see Rulon come in and get a big strikeout and a double play. That’s a great confidence booster for him.”
Greene went 2-for-3 with three RBI, while Mike Trapani had three hits and drove in two runs. Danny Payne broke out of a 2-for-35 slump with two hits and a walk, while Steven Blackwood and Wes Hodges added two hits each. The Yellow Jackets outhit the Hokies, 14-4, and were a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts.
The Yellow Jackets took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Payne singled and scored on a RBI single from Hodges. A two-run homer from Greene, his 10th of the year, made the score 3-0 in the second inning.
A three-run fourth inning extended the Yellow Jackets’ lead to 6-0. Robbins led off the inning with a solo home run, his second of the season, while Greene and Hodges added RBI singles. In the fifth, Andy Hawranick walked, stole second base and scored on Trapani’s RBI single to extend the lead to 7-0.
Georgia Tech added three more runs in the seventh to make the score 10-0. Hawranick and Trapani had RBI hits, and Trapani scored on a wild pitch.
Meanwhile, Hyde kept the Hokie offense in check. The left-hander shut out Virginia Tech on three hits over the first seven innings before loading the bases with no outs in the eighth inning on a hit and two walks. Rulon worked out of the jam by getting a strikeout and a double play groundout to end the inning and preserve the shutout.
Virginia Tech starter Greg Fryman (3-2) took the loss, allowing five runs on seven hits in three-plus innings.
Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech will continue the three-game series on Saturday at 7 p.m.
