Although the baseball team traveled to Coral Gables, Fla., during spring break, the players were not there on vacation. Instead, they took on the No. 6 Hurricanes, dropping their three games, 14-3, 12-1, 6-1, respectively.
The Blue Devils then bounced back with a 5-3 win March 15 against Navy, but the team failed to build a win streak, getting swept by Wright State (6-8) this weekend.
Despite late-game rallies against the Raiders, the Blue Devils (7-16) failed to capitalize on their opportunities and lost by a single run each day.
“We ended with great energy, but we had no energy to start the game,” head coach Bill Hillier said. “Our guys need to be mentally ready to play when they get to the ballpark.”
Duke freshman Josh Albert hit a ball over the fence in the bottom of the ninth Sunday, but Wright State’s Ross Vagedes reached over the wall to catch the ball and end another comeback bid.
The offense has produced runs more consistently in the early innings of late. In the team’s win over Navy, a four-run third inning put Duke far enough ahead to hang on to its first win of the month. Brett Bartles, who is averaging .436 in his first collegiate season, picked up two RBIs. Greg Burke earned his fourth win of the season against the Midshipmen, striking out eight batters in six innings.
But that game was the sole highlight of an otherwise disappointing couple of weeks for the Blue Devils. The Hurricanes’ pitchers kept Duke relatively quiet at the plate, as nine Miami pitchers combined for 24 strikeouts over the weekend. Even though the Blue Devils were able to rack up 10 hits in the first game of the series, they managed to leave 13 batters stranded on base. Meanwhile, Miami took advantage of its opportunities with batters on base and scored 14 runs.
“They threw very well,” junior Adam Murray said. “It was a little frustrating because we thought we could hit some of their pitchers. But they played very well, and they played hard. We just didn’t get anything going.”
The ACC newcomer and perennial top-10 team handily beat the Blue Devils in the teams’ first ever series. Duke remains winless in the conference, sitting at the bottom of the ACC after losing all six of its games against Georgia Tech and Miami.
“They played all facets of the game at a very high level,” Murray said. “They really battled every at bat like it was the most important at bat of the game.
“That’s what good teams do, and we have to strive to be more like that. They were a perfect example, and that’s why they’ve been so successful.”
The Blue Devils said they know what it takes to win in a talent-laden conference like the ACC, but execution has proven difficult for Duke.
“I think we need to realize that the first inning is just as important as the last inning and playing with mental focus and maintain it throughout the game,” Murray said. “People need to realize that mistakes in the first are as important as mistakes in the late innings.”
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