In a time where pitchers, especially on the college level, do not see a lot of innings in a single game, there was a pitching dual in Atlanta, Georgia yesterday that should be noted. Tate McKee would take the mound for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets as their opening day starter, while on the other side of the mound, the Old Dominion Monarchs would start Ben Moore.
McKee would retire the first seven batters that he faced before hitting Monarchs catcher Evan Holman. McKee would then turn a double play to get out of the third inning.
The sophomore pitcher would give up his first hit of the day to Monarchs catcher Efrain Morales in the fourth inning, but would not give up a run until the fifth inning. McKee would be replaced by Carson Ballard going into the sixth inning.
While McKee did pitch five innings, he would allow just one hit and allow one run before he was pulled by Yellow Jackets head coach Danny Hall.
Moore would also start the season strong, walking three Yellow Jackets in 5.1 innings of work, while also allowing just one hit, a single to Yellow Jackets catcher Vahn Lackey.
Moore would also go the first four innings, toe-to-toe with McKee, as both pitchers would not allow a hit until the fifth inning of the contest. While the strikeouts were minimal, with McKee having the 3-2 advantage over Moore, both pitchers did a great job taking command of the plate.
Both pitchers solidified themselves as important players to their teams, and why their respective coaches chose them to take the mound for opening day this season.