Tech to face Miami for ACC baseball title
The Georgia Tech baseball team has one more hill to climb Sunday on an improbable ascent. The Yellow Jackets will play Miami for the ACC championship in Greensboro, N.C., eight days after their spot in the eight-team tournament was secured on the final day of the regular season.
The game will start at noon and will be carried on ESPN2.
The No. 8 seed, Tech upset top-seeded Florida State (the top-ranked team in the country) on Wednesday, beat No. 17 Virginia on Friday and then Clemson on Saturday behind six innings from Jake Davies, who limited the Tigers to two hits in the fourth pitching start of his career.
A team that entered the tournament on the NCAA tournament bubble, Tech can secure its ticket automatically by winning its first ACC title since 2005. The Jackets (35-24) are just the third No. 8 seed to reach the final.
“We didn’t have anything to lose,” Davies said. “Nobody expected us to do anything. We upset the No. 1 seed and then things just kind of fell into place.”
Davies has taken the lead role, hitting four home runs in three games, including a two-run shot in the first inning of Saturday’s game to give the Jackets a lead they never surrendered in their 5-1 win.
Davies is 5-for-11 in the three games with nine RBI and a slugging percentage of 1.636, not a bad addendum to his portfolio before the major league draft begins June 4.
“This is the best I’ve ever seen the ball,” Davies said. “I’m playing probably the best three games I’ve played in my career.”
Freshman Josh Heddinger, who demonstrated his big-game appetite earlier this season with two solid starts against Georgia, is expected to pitch for the Jackets against Miami. The sixth-seeded Hurricanes (36-20) took two of three from Tech on the final weekend of the season, though the three-game aggregate was 14-12 in Miami’s favor.
Including the win over the Hurricanes to secure the No. 8 seed, Tech has now won four games in a row over ACC opponents. Prior to that, the longest winning streak the Jackets put together against ACC competition this season was three games, and did that against Boston College and Duke, neither of which qualified for the tournament.
“Offensively, that’s really what we should have been doing all season,” Davies said. “You know what? You get hot at the right time. That’s what this thing’s about.”
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302 comments Add your comment
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:11 pm
WOW TECH is hitting/seeing the ball like it is as big as a Softball.
FL Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:12 pm
Killin ‘em early
FL Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:13 pm
Mott’s HR had to be 400+ ft
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:13 pm
Hi FLJ! What are you doing on the blog? Shouldn’t you be at the beach?
1 4 GT
May 27th, 2012
1:14 pm
Well. I guess SS needs to be in a padded room now.
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:14 pm
BAD CALL at first
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:15 pm
BS he was SAFE bad Bad Bad call
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:15 pm
@ 1 4 GT…….what ????
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:16 pm
NOW? SS needed that padded room since the Clem&Sons football game last year.
Flowery Branch Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:16 pm
As well as we’re playing, we are not taking advantage of the opportunities presented by the ‘Canes. We really should have 9-10 runs on the board by now.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:17 pm
I hear the Miami Softball Picture is available. She couldn’t do any worse. LOL
jmonty
May 27th, 2012
1:17 pm
UM hitting the bull pen again… Hope GT can keep it up.
BLT
May 27th, 2012
1:17 pm
A double would be nice.
1 4 GT
May 27th, 2012
1:17 pm
Well , I guess Supersize needs to be in a padded room now, poor guy.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:18 pm
Pitcher…….damn
FL Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:18 pm
5150…
Had plans for tomorrow to go to the beach…Beryl might change that.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:19 pm
NOMAR knocking it out with Mia Ham. I wonder what they bet on the UNC v GT games? LOL
1 4 GT
May 27th, 2012
1:19 pm
Well, SS, I’ve seen it all now. You’re talking to yourself on line. How’s that feel??
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:20 pm
@ 1 4 GT……I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. In fact, I might even hazard a guess that you’re a fake. I just saw that “A person SMART enough to know…… ” has an imposter on the recruiting blog. There is one sick puppy out there who obviously doesn’t have a life of his own.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:20 pm
FLJ just get a REAL BIG KITE and you could fly up to Atlanta for free. LOL
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:20 pm
It will be especially nice to beat Miami for the championship since Morris dumped us for them. Garciaparra talking about the team that finished second at CWS.
Ken Sugiura
May 27th, 2012
1:21 pm
good start for the jackets. i’ve tried banning your imposter, supersize. we’ll see how effective it is.
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:21 pm
LOL @ UOAD. Maybe that’s what 1 4 GT meant. At any rate SMART’s imposter claimed to have a bf named Todd, and my imposter made the same claim. So it’s the same guy doing it. PATHETIC LOSER
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:22 pm
SUPER…………The STALKER has learned all these peoples names and is just being stupid.
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:22 pm
@ Ken……thanks. Others have tried too, but he keeps coming back. Can I take out a warrant on him? LOL
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:23 pm
WOW got to ABC and check the INDY Huge Wreck
1 4 GT
May 27th, 2012
1:23 pm
SS, near the first of the blog, you were having a conversation, albeit a short one, with yourself. LOL
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:23 pm
UOAD……yes, I know. The guy must have some serious mental problems. He needs to be under 24 hour care.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:23 pm
A shame Hewitt didn’t dump us too since we seem to forgive all the coaches who use their best year here to get more money elsewhere.
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:24 pm
@ 14 GT……ok, I got it now. You should have said a little more to begin with. Remember, I AM old and slow now. LOL
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:25 pm
It is WnE trying to feel better about himself.
Damn that was a ROPE at his feet.
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:25 pm
Wake up, Thomas Smith
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:26 pm
OK now time to get the Bull Pen working.
They are hitting it HARD now.
Supersize that order, mutt
May 27th, 2012
1:27 pm
What the hell are they doing out there?
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:28 pm
COACH……….Pitcher is struggling. GET the PEN WORKING FAST just in case.
Flowery Branch Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:30 pm
Heddinger might be afraid to pitch strikes now, since he doesn’t appear to have much of a defense behind him. Our fielding this season has been some of the worst I’ve seen in several years of supporting Tech baseball.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:30 pm
Pull the STRING on that Yo-Yo right now.
Good Call I believe by coach HALL
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:35 pm
Umps helping keep it close for the neutral fans. Wren was safe.
Now Canes back in it.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:37 pm
Don’t think we are done scoring though.
another good DP.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:38 pm
Nice DP to end that CRAP.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:39 pm
How often do we get the ACC tourney in Atlanta? About like basketball, every 5 years or so.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:41 pm
2 drops on the same play.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:42 pm
BTW were Mott the Hoople any good?
1 4 GT
May 27th, 2012
1:45 pm
Mott the Hoople was a good southern rock band–couple big hits.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:46 pm
I sure am glad Jackets have had such a good tournament as the Braves can’t seem to play without Chipper. Well Freeman has some kind of eye injury too. Minor should have been sent down to AAA already.
Biff Pocoroba
May 27th, 2012
1:47 pm
ACC tourney hasn’t been in Atlanta for over 20 years. Not since the ACC only had 9 teams. Greenville used to have it a lot but there were too many Clemson fans.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:48 pm
Thanks 1 4 GT.
I stopped spending on rock music about the time they showed up.
1 4 GT
May 27th, 2012
1:49 pm
Mott the Hoople was in the same vein as Black Oak Arkansas.
Robert the Yellow Jacket
May 27th, 2012
1:50 pm
Lots of good seats going to waste. Wish someone could predict when we are going to have a tourney run in either basketball or baseball.
5150 UOAD
May 27th, 2012
1:50 pm
Yes MOTT the HOOPLE is good he almost single handily beat the MUTTS at The TED this year. Hahaha