Duke head coach Chris Pollard was nervous that his team would be complacent after beating ACC powerhouse Georgia Tech in a three-game series this past weekend.
“That’s something that you worry about as a coach, to come out in a midweek game after you have a big weekend in conference play,” Pollard said. “There’s a fear that you come out [overlooking] the midweek games.”
Instead, the Blue Devils (20-14, 8-7 ACC) crushed UNC-Greensboro 17-2 at Jack Coombs Field only two days after beating the Yellow Jackets. After a series in which Duke used pitching to stifle its opponent, the Blue Devils routed the Spartans, scoring their most runs since Feb. 22, 2012 when they scored 17 against N.C. Central.
Freshman starter Michael Matuella took the mound for the Blue Devils, but got into trouble early against UNC-Greensboro (16-17, 4-8 Southern Conference). The righty gave up three singles in the first inning to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead. Matuella, however, quickly settled down, and did not give up a run for the rest of his five innings pitched. His performance continued the Blue Devils’ dominance on the mound, as they have surrendered more than three runs only once in their past nine games, when Boston College scored four on March 30.
“Greensboro has a really good offensive team, so it didn’t surprise me that they put two runs on the board in the first,” Pollard said. “But it was a great job by Matuella of settling in after that.”
An offensive explosion complemented Matuella’s solid performance. Duke only scored six runs overall against Georgia Tech, but matched that total in the third inning alone. With two outs, first baseman Chris Marconcini smacked a two-out, bases-loaded triple to right-center field, scoring three. Left fielder Mark Lumpa then singled to score Marconcini, followed by catcher Ryan Munger singling to score Lumpa and shortstop Kenny Koplove, who had reached base on a double.
Marconcini struck again in the fourth inning, mashing a two-run home run to right field, his team-leading sixth of the year. Duke padded its lead with two more runs in the fourth, off a double from right fielder Jeff Kremer to score second baseman Andy Perez and third baseman Jordan Betts single to score Kremer and give the Blue Devils a 10-2 lead.
Duke still wasn’t done yet, adding seven more runs in the fifth inning. After Munger and designated hitter Matt Berezo started the inning with two outs, Perez, Kremer and center fielder Grant McCabe loaded the bases. Betts unleashed a single to right field to score Perez and Kremer, while McCabe scored two at-bats later after successive walks from Marconcini and Lumpa. Koplove then singled to score Marconcini and Betts. Munger, up for the second time in the inning, doubled to score Lumpa and Koplove.
“The key was that we were patient and we didn’t swing at pitches that were outside the strike zone,” Pollard said. “We were also particularly exceptional with two outs.”
Lumpa, Koplove and Betts all finished the day with three hits, while Munger and Marconcini each reached career-highs in RBIs, notching four and five respectively. Each Blue Devil starter reached base, with everyone tallying a hit except for McCabe, who was hit by a pitch in the fifth.
Duke relievers Remy Janco, Garrett Heyward and Koplove, who took the mound for the second time this season, shut down the Spartans, giving up no runs on three hits scattered within four innings of relief. Meanwhile, after the Blue Devils forced Spartans starter Dylan Hathcock to exit the game after only 2.2 innings, UNC-Greensboro needed seven additional pitchers to get through Duke’s lineup.
“To come out after seeing some big arms this weekend that kind of shut us down offensively and to put up big numbers on the board, it helps everybody relax,” Pollard said. “It’s great for our offense to get some confidence from this win.”
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