It doesn’t take rocket science to figure out why Virginia Tech baseball lost to Stanford on Sunday.
It left 17 batters on base, hitting 0-for-6 with the bases loaded, 0-for-10 with two outs, 3-for-22 with runners on and 3-for-17 with them in scoring position.
“It’s very frustrating,” Hokies head coach John Szefc said of the team’s situational hitting. “That was the difference in the game. If we score a little bit more, it’s probably a different outcome. When you have opportunities, you’ve got to take advantage, and we didn’t do it, we lose. Simple.”
Starter Griffin Stieg and a steady bullpen effort could only provide Tech’s offense with opportunities for so long, eventually giving up a three-run 10th inning to the Cardinal (13-13 3-6 ACC) for the final 6-3 score and series defeat.
Preston Crowl pitched 2 ⅔ one-run innings in Friday’s loss for the Hokies (13-13, 5-7) and was eight outs into a scoreless relief outing during Sunday’s final frame, where he finally faltered with two outs.
Cardinal right fielder Brock Sell knocked a fortunate double — an awkward flair into left field by the foul line — that bounced out of play, which would’ve brought up Rintaro Sasaki, but he was intentionally walked. Tech had successfully ended innings after intentional walks three other times to that point.
However, Teddy Tokheim bounced a two-run single up the middle of the infield to put the Cardinal ahead 5-3, and Charlie Bates followed with a similar-looking RBI single. Logan Eisenreich relieved Crowl and struck out JJ Moran to bring about one more chance for Tech’s offense.
Cardinal pitcher Trevor Moore started his third inning by flying out Pete Daniel. Ethan Ball followed with an eight-pitch walk, but he was stranded at second after Hudson Lutterman and Nick Locurto only managed contact outs.
Moore also picked up the win on Friday after holding the Hokies scoreless in the last three frames. On Sunday, he put them down in order in the eighth but nearly lost the game in the ninth after allowing a Henry Cooke double and two walks to load the bases.
However, Tech’s situational hitting woes proved insurmountable. Ethan Gibson fouled off three straight pitches before striking out, then Sam Grube — who has two walk-off hits this season — flied out to right field on a diving play by Sell.
It was the third instance on the day that Tech left three runners on base. In the third inning, Stanford lefty Brock Ketelsen allowed a Daniel single and three straight walks, the last being Cooke’s, to drive in a game-tying run at two. Still in need of two outs, the Cardinal pivoted to lefty Cohen Gomez, who struck out Owen Petrich before Sam Gates grounded out.
The fifth inning was similar, with Grube striking out for the second out of the inning and Daniel following with a groundout to strand a trio of runners. Tech managed a run prior to that sequence with Gates singling home Locurto — who had a leadoff double — with two on and an out, making it three apiece.
Stanford and Tech traded small blows before that, with the Cardinal scoring a run in the first and second innings off RBI singles from Charlie Bates and Luke Lavin, who also had a solo homer in the fourth inning.
Stieg forced a host of contact outs outside of that, though, and, like Stanford’s seven-arm pitching attack, did well to leave runners on base with the help of Tech’s error-free defense.
The redshirt junior stranded corner runners in the second inning by forcing Sasaki to chop a fielder’s choice grounder. Then, with two outs and the bases loaded in the fifth after Tokheim walked, Moran doubled and Eric Jeon was intentionally walked, Stieg forced MacDonald to fly out to right.
His four-strikeout, seven-hit and three-earned-run start ended after a 1-2-3 sixth inning. Stieg improved as his outing lengthened, giving up runs in his first two innings and just one throughout the rest.
“I get amped up a little bit [as my outings go along],” Stieg said. “I get fiery, sometimes to a fault. I calm myself down, get my groove and just stay there, which has been the most beneficial thing for me. Finding that as early as possible will benefit me in the long run.”
On the other hand, Stanford’s by-committee pitching approach proved effective, primarily when it mattered most. It used three left-handed arms — including starter Andrew Shaw, Ketelson and Mike Erspamer — that combined for 2 ⅓ innings and no earned runs.
The Cardinal’s right-handers, Kassius Thomas, Cohen Gomez, Toran O’Harran and Trevor Moore, combined for 7 ⅔ frames. O’Harran pitched 2 ⅓ no-hit innings and picked up a win on Friday, then returned Sunday for two innings without any earned runs, since Gates’ RBI single plated one of Gomez’s baserunners.
“That’s California ball I guess, just staffing it today,” Stieg said. “Going out there, just throwing a bunch of different angles, a bunch of different slots. That’s a tough way to win a ball game, but they executed really well, so props to them. It’s just tough on the hitters, never getting the same look twice.”
Next, the Hokies head to Radford on Tuesday for the first of two midweek games against the Highlanders this season. The game’s first pitch is at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
They’ll look to get back on track in conference play after that with trips to Miami and Boston College. For now, they’re 1-3 in ACC series, facing an uphill climb to an NCAA Regional, though plenty of time remains.
“It hurts, it sucks right now,” Szefc said. “It’s hard to say how [consequential Sunday's loss will be] in the grand scheme of things. You certainly don’t want to lose the home series, but we didn’t play well enough to win the series.”
Box Score: Stanford 6, Virginia Tech 3 (10 innings)