CLEMSON, SC -- Georgia Tech Baseball continued its 2026 Fall slate with a 6-3 victory over Clemson in a nine-inning exhibition on Friday night from Doug Kingsmore Stadium in Clemson, S.C. The Yellow Jackets took a three-run lead in the early innings and never relinquished it. Clemson threatened to tie the game with an eighth inning surge but a gutsy outing from Carson Ballard kept the lead in hand (4-3) before Kent Schmidt blasted his second home run of the game to put the final score at 6-3 and improve GT’s fall record to 2-0.
Dimitri Angelakos made the start, after posting a 3.81 ERA and a team-low 0.95 WHIP over 14 appearances and three starts in the spring. The rising junior retired all six batters he faced over 2.0 innings with three strikeouts, all coming in the first inning, and no runs allowed before giving way to the bullpen. In total, the Yellow Jackets used seven pitchers, headlined by scoreless outings from freshman Michael Nottleman (2.0 IP | 4 Ks | 1 H), a scoreless 7th inning from junior Tyler Guerin (1.0 IP | 2 Ks) and a clutch three outs from Ballard who entered the game with the bases loaded and nobody out in the eighth inning. Sophomore Jayden Stroman came in for the save, pitching a scoreless ninth inning with only one walk allowed. As a staff, Tech pitching held Clemson to just three runs on five hits with 10 strikeouts.
Tech started a 10-man batting order featuring returners Will Baker, Kent Schmdit, Ryan Zuckerman, Caleb Daniel, Drew Rogers and Coleman Lewis alongside transfer portal pickups Jackson Morgan, Eli Stephens, Holden Pantier and Jordan Lodise.
The Jackets lived up to the billing on offense, recording seven hits and three runs in the first three innings, thanks to a SAC fly from Lodise, a solo home run from Schmidt and a two-out RBI double from Pantier. Daniel added a fourth run off a solo home run in the eighth inning before Schmidt put the game to bed with a two-run homer in the ninth. Daniel (two singles and a solo homer) and Pantier (an RBI double and two singles) led the offense with three hits each, along with a two homer, three RBI day from Schmidt. All 10 Tech starters reached base with nine recording hits.
Tech will take on the Tigers in the second half of the home-and-home tomorrow, Oct. 31 at 1 pm from Mac Nease Baseball Park at Russ Chandler Stadium. Admission is free and both concessions and game day parking are available for purchase.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
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