Panthers Suffer Ninth Inning Heartbreaker in 6-5 Loss to No. 19 Duke

Sunday, March 25

Pittsburgh, Pa.

1 PM

Pitt

12-9, 2-7-0

Duke

20-5, 6-3-0

Duke

Pittsburgh

Panthers Suffer Ninth Inning Heartbreaker in 6-5 Loss to No. 19 Duke

3/25/2018 5:31:00 PM | Baseball

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Pitt Drops Series with Blue Devils, 2-1

PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh baseball team dropped the series finale with Duke on Sunday afternoon at Charles L. Cost Field, dropping a 6-5 decision after a ninth inning Duke rally.

"Obviously that was a very tough game today," said head coach Joe Jordano. "We got off to a rough first inning again and gave them a lead. We made a couple mistakes on two pitches and a couple defensive plays that costs us. But, we had our opportunities and it was a just a good baseball game that we came up on the short end. We just have to keep moving forward, keeping being positive and prepare ourselves for next week. Staying focused on the things that we control."

Duke (20-5, 6-3 ACC) tallied a run each in the first two innings to take an early lead, but the Panthers would storm back and score three in the second to take back the lead. Ron Washington Jr., who had worked a leadoff walk, made it home on a Cole MacLaren single after advancing to third on a walk from Nico Popa and an error on a Connor Perry sacrifice bunt. Alex Amos was able to smack a hit to bring Perry home, and a Liam Sabino double would get stuck under the fence in left field, allowing Popa to score on a ground rule.

The Blue Devils went ahead once again in the third, after a two-run jack helped them establish a 3-2 advantage. The lead wouldn't last long though, as Pitt (12-9, 2-7 ACC) would push in front 5-4 in the fourth after David Yanni ripped a double to right field to score Amos and Sabino, who had moved into scoring position on Sabino's second double of the day.

A solo home run from Duke in the sixth would pull the two teams even at five.

The score would remain knotted at five until the ninth inning, when Duke would add one on a close play at home plate on a fielder's choice. Unable to score in the final frame, the Panthers would drop the game by a final score of 6-5.

Sophomore RJ Freure (2-1) had a stellar outing in his tenth appearance this season, pitching 5.0 innings, only allowing three hits while walking two and striking out eight. Yasin Chentouf (2-1) earned his first loss of the season.

Offensively, the left corner of the infield led the way, as Yanni went 1-4 with an RBI, while Sabino was 3-5 with an RBI and a run scored.

The Panthers return to action this Tuesday when they travel to Morgantown for a mid-week showdown with West Virginia University at 6 p.m.

Notes: Pitt is now 8-11-0 all-time against Duke and 7-6-0 against the Blue Devils in ACC play … David Yanni extended his team-best reached base streak to 31 games dating back to the 2016 season.

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