Blue Devils win series but miss ACC tourney

In many respects, Duke's final ACC series in Blacksburg, Va. was a microcosm of its entire season.

Many things went right-in the series opener, pitcher Andrew Wolcott held Virginia Tech to just one run over six innings en route to a 4-2 win, and the finale saw senior designated hitter Jonathan Nicolla hit a double and drive in two runs as the Blue Devils concluded the year with their third-best record ever.

But just enough went wrong to keep Duke out of the ACC tournament.

The Blue Devils (37-18-1, 10-18-1 in the ACC), down four in the ninth inning of the second game Friday, could only muster one run against the Hokies (23-32, 6-24) and lost both the game and its shot at postseason play 8-5 at English Field.

"We put ourselves in position where we had to sweep on the road which is tough to do in the ACC," head coach Sean McNally said. "In that middle game, Virginia Tech just outplayed us a little bit. It's disappointing and unfortunately, we finished ninth."

Although Duke outhit Virginia Tech 12-8 in the deciding game, nine men left on base-including five in the final three frames-ultimately doomed the Blue Devils.

But to call that game the reason Duke did not make the postseason would neglect numerous squandered chances over the course of the season.

There was the first road series of the year against Georgia Tech, in which the Blue Devils lost by one and two runs in the first two games and could not complete rallies.

With the series win against the Hokies, Duke finished half a game behind Clemson-and had it managed to preserve that lead, it would have overtaken the Tigers for the eighth and final spot in the ACC tournament.

Despite the missed chances, however, the Blue Devils still managed to have one of their most successful seasons in program history. They finished the year with an unblemished 27-0 mark in non-conference play for the first time in program history and won an ACC series against a ranked opponent for the first time under McNally when they took two out of three games from Virginia.

Unlike last year, when Duke finished 3-8 to close out the year, it finished strong, going 8-4 over the final 12 games-although the Blue Devils were swept by Wake Forest in their penultimate conference series.

"To go from 15 wins to 27 to 37 and to win 10 conference games in the third season is a great sign of things to come," McNally said. "We're definitely disappointed we're not playing the tournament, but feel excited about what's ahead."