No.19 Miami 11, Duke 5: Hurricanes Offense Earns Series Clinching Win

The Miami Hurricanes won their weekend series vs the Duke Blue Devils with an 11-5 win on Saturday night. The Hurricanes moved to 15-8 (9-7 ACC) with the win and will hope to sweep Duke tomorrow afternoon.

Miami got out to an early lead in the bottom of the second. Anthony Vilar gave the Hurricanes a baserunner with one out with a single up the middle. Vilar then stole second before scoring on an Adrian Del Castillo RBI-single. Miami extended the lead when Alex Toral hit an RBI-single that scored Del Castillo and gave the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead.

The Hurricanes extended the lead with a six run second inning. A single and an error put two men on for Jordan Lala before he hit an RBI single to make the score 3-0. Anthony Vilar followed with a two-RBI single before Christian Del Castillo scored another run with a single to left-center. Miami then scored their last two runs of the inning with a passed ball and an RBI-single from Ray Gil.

Miami added another run in the fourth off of an error before Duke scored in the fifth. Two walks and a single loaded the bases for the Blue Devils before a grand slam made the score 9-4. Victor Mederos had been spectacular for the Hurricanes before the fifth. Mederos has consistently struggled this season when facing opposing batters for the third time, and it’s something Miami’s coaching staff will hope to help him improve over the next few months.

The bottom of the seventh saw the Hurricanes add on a few runs. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases for Yohandy Morales with nobody out. Morales hit into a double play but a run scored, and then an RBI-single from Christian Del Castillo made the score 11-4.

Duke scored a run in the ninth inning on an RBI-double but could not mount a comeback as Miami took the victory and the series. Tomorrow, Jordan Dubberly will hope to lead Miami to a sweep in his second start for the Hurricanes.

Game Info

Winning Pitcher: Victor Mederos (1-2, 5.0 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 8 K)

Losing Pitcher: Henry Williams (2-3, 1.2 IP, 10 H, 8 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 5 K)

Save: None

(Box Score posted when available)

Next Game

Vs Duke Game 3

Date & Time: Sunday, April 4, 1:00 p.m.

Hurricanes Starter: Jordan Dubberly (0-0, 4.58 ERA)

Duke Starter: Jack Carey, Jr. (1-0, 7.27 ERA)

Radio: WVUM 90.5 FM

Television: ACC Network Extra