Yellow Jacked Up
Fansided

Georgia Tech Baseball: Jackets get swept by Clemson in first ACC series

By Dylan Callaghan-Croley

ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 08: A general view of baseball gloves ahead of the Philadephia Phillies versus Atlanta Braves during their opening day game at Turner Field on April 8, 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 08: A general view of baseball gloves ahead of the Philadephia Phillies versus Atlanta Braves during their opening day game at Turner Field on April 8, 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Georgia Tech baseball were swept by the Clemson Tigers in their first ACC series of the 2018 season.

The Georgia Tech baseball team didn’t get off to start they hoped for in their first ACC series of the 2018 season. The Jackets took on the highly ranked Clemson Tigers in a three-game series over Friday and a Saturday doubleheader. The result was the Jackets getting swept by the Tigers including a blow out loss in the third game of the series.

As alluded to yesterday, the Yellow Jackets received strong pitching performances from Xzavion Curry and Connor Thomas on Friday and Saturday. On Friday, Curry gave the Jackets their best shot at winning a game in the series as he allowed two earned runs over five innings of work. Offensively, Chase Murray and Joey Bart supplied most of the Jackets offense as they had five combined hits including an RBI.

On Saturday, Connor Thomas got the start and surrendered five runs (three earned) over seven hits and seven innings of work. The sophomore also struck out nine Tigers in the process. For the Jackets, two errors in Saturday’s first game proved to be fatal. Offensively, Joey Bart was once again a huge presence in the game as he hit his fifth home run, a two-run shot in the ninth inning.  Tristin English had the only other RBI in game one on Saturday.

In game two on Saturday, freshman Brant Hurter got the start and was shelled as he surrendered seven runs on three runs and three walks in the first inning. He would not return for a second inning of work. That being said, when you’re down 7-0 start a game, it is less than encouraging. The Jackets in the second game never could get on track as the bullpen surrendered six more runs over the next eight innings. Offensively, the Jackets never got started, picking up just two runs en route to a 13-2 loss.

For the Yellow Jackets, being swept means that they will start ACC play with an 0-3 record and their overall record has dropped to 9-6. The Jackets have struggled in ACC play over the last few seasons and picked up just 14 wins in their last 45 tries (h/t Matt Thompson). With that, there is obviously reason for concern going forward but there is reason for optimism.

First, the Jackets top two starters in Xzavion Curry and Connor Thomas this season have outstood and offer optimism moving forward. Second, the Jackets offense outside of game three of the series was able to make contact and get base hits. The only problem of course was getting those base runners home. If they can find a way to get the clutch hits going forward, the Jackets will be in prime contention to compete against fellow ACC teams.

Next: Softball: Jackets sweep UVA to start ACC play

Either way, the Jackets certainly did not get off to a great with their series against Clemson. Moving forward, they won’t be able to afford being swept again by another ACC opponent. They’ll get their first crack at home this season in ACC play when they take on Virginia Tech next weekend. However, they must first travel to Auburn on Tuesday to finish up their five game road trip.