April 12, 2008
ATLANTA – Yonder Alonso, Jason Hagerty and Blake Tekotte homered to power a 17-hit attack, leading top-ranked Miami past No. 10 Georgia Tech, 10-4, in the first game of a double-header Saturday afternoon at Russ Chandler Stadium.
Chris Hernandez (5-0) pitched six solid innings to remain undefeated for the Hurricanes, who improved to 28-3 overall and 13-1 in the ACC to remain atop the Coastal Division. Tech lost its third conference game in its last four to fall to 26-8 overall, 9-7 in the ACC.
Miami built a 4-0 lead against losing pitcher David Duncan (4-2) before Tech got on the board, beginning when Alonso belted a two-run homer, his seventh of the season, in the first. Ryan Jackson doubled in the fourth and scored on a two-out single by Dave DiNatale. In the fifth, Jemile Weeks led off with a single and came around to score on a ground out.
Hernandez limited Tech to two hits through four innings before the Yellow Jackets broke through for three runs in its half of the fifth. Tony Plagman walked and scored on Jason Haniger’s double. Back-to-back bunt singles by Jeff Rowland and Chris House brought Haniger home, and Rowland scored after two out on Luke Murton’s bloop single.
The Hurricanes strung four hits together, including RBI-singles from Mark Sobolewski and Jackson, to get the three runs back in the seventh and restore Miami’s advantage to 7-3. Back-to-back home runs by Jason Hagerty and Blake Tekotte padded the Miami lead to 9-3 in the eighth, and DiNatale doubled home the Hurricanes’ final run in the ninth.
Hernandez scattered seven hits, walked two and fanned six over his six innings of work. Duncan gave up eight hits and four runs in five innings.
Tech touched Miami’s bullpen for single runs in the eighth and ninth. Murton, who had three hits and drove in two runs, hit his fourth homer of the season in the eighth, and Brad Feltes singled in a run for the Jackets in the ninth.
