Virginia Tech defeated The Citadel 4-3 in an elimination game on Sunday afternoon, and it will now come down to the Hokies and the South Carolina Gamecocks for the Regional Championship.
Because South Carolina has not lost yet, the Hokies will have to beat them twice to win the Regional. The Gamecocks can end things tonight with a win over Tech, because the Hokies lost to The Citadel in the opening game of the double elimination Regional.
Starting pitcher Jesse Hahn threw just three innings before being removed from the game because of a sore arm. Hahn left with a 3-0 lead, and his early exit forced head coach Pete Hughes to go with his bullpen for the remainder of the game. Freshman Joe Mantiply worked 3.2 innings, allowing three runs and two earned runs to keep his team in the game. It was a quality performance from the freshman in a pressure situation, and he struck out four of the 18 batters he faced.
Closer Ben Rowen pitched the final 2.1 innings and did not allow a run. The Hokies made three errors in the game, which made things dicey, but they managed to pick up the win thanks to quality pitching.
Right fielder Austin Wates continued his quality play, going 2-for-4 with two RBI’s. Buddy Sosnoskie also had two RBI’s, including the eventual game-winning RBI in the top of the sixth inning.
The Hokies will now have a quick turnaround, facing South Carolina tonight at 7pm. If they lose that game, their season is over. If they win, they will play the Gamecocks at 7pm on Monday night for the Regional Championship.
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