Georgia Tech Sweeps NC State Baseball, 7-3

Sunday, May 2

Raleigh, N.C.

1:30 PM

NC State

28-18, 0

Georgia Tech

27-17, 0

Georgia Tech

NC State

5/2/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

May 2, 2004

Final Stats

RALEIGH, N.C. - Steven Blackwood drove in three runs and Andrew Kown pitched seven strong innings Sunday to lead Georgia Tech to a rain-shortened 7-3 victory over NC State in the second game of a doubleheader at Doak Field. The win gave the Yellow Jackets a sweep of the doubleheader with the Wolfpack and lifted them to 27-17 overall and 9-5 in the ACC. NC State fell to 28-18 overall and 9-11 in the ACC.

Kown (7-1) allowed two runs on six hits, walked four and struck out three. Kown has won his last six decisions. NC State's Vern Sterry (7-2) took the loss after allowing a season-high seven runs, five earned, on nine hits in 6 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out three. The loss was just the second in Sterry's college career.

The Yellow Jackets scratched for a run in the top of the second. Micah Owings and Brandon Boggs led off with singles to center, putting runners on the corners with none out. Boggs got picked off first base for the first out of the inning, but Clifton Remole got the run home with a grounder to second base, giving Tech a 1-0 lead.

Georgia Tech scored four in the top of the third. Sterry retired Whitt Robbins leading off the inning on a groundout, but after Andy Hawranick walked, Eric Patterson singled to left, Wes Hodges hit an RBI-double to right, Steven Blackwood hit a two-run double into the right-field corner, Owings singled up the middle, and Brandon Boggs drove in a run with a double down the right-field line. The four runs in the inning were as many runs as Sterry had given up in any previous game this season.

The Wolfpack got on the scoreboard with a run in the bottom of the fourth. David Hicks reached on a one-out walk, went to second when Lee Mezistrano walked, and scored on Jason St. Julien's single to left. The Pack added another run in the bottom of the fifth when Jake Muyco led off with a single to center field, went to second on Jonathan Diaz's bunt, and scored on a single up the middle by Matt Camp.

A brief rain delay ensued at the end of the sixth inning. Patterson led off the top of the seventh following the delay and grounded to Camp, who booted the ball for an error. With Patterson running, Wes Hodges hit a Baltimore-chop single over Hicks's head and into right field, putting runners on first and third with none out. Blackwood got Patterson home with a sacrifice fly to center field, driving Sterry from the game. Joey Devine came out of the bullpen and struck out Owings for the second out, but Boggs hit an RBI-single high off the top of the wall in left, giving the Jackets a 7-2 lead. Boggs was cut down trying to stretch his single into a double for the final out of the inning.

Lee Mezistrano led off the bottom of the eighth with a double to right, went to third on a groundout by Jason St. Julien and scored on a groundout by pinch-hitter Conor Clougherty, pulling the Wolfpack to within four runs at 7-3. The rain came one batter into the ninth inning, but baseball rules state that a game shortened by weather must revert to the last completed inning.