Birdball Splits #TheRivalry Doubleheader With Wake

The Boston College baseball team won its first ACC contest of the season in dramatic fashion, walking off with a 2-1 victory in the first game of a double header with Wake Forest yesterday.  The teams played at Friedman Diamond at Parsons Field on the campus of Northeastern due to unplayable conditions at Shea Field at BC.

The two teams earlier traded runs in the third inning to create the tie scenario.  With starting pitcher Jack Fischer going deep into the game and starting the ninth inning for Wake, John Hennessy led off with a single and moved to third when Chris Shaw singled to right.  That removed Fischer from the game after eight-plus innings in favor of Massachusetts native and nephew of former Red Sox and Brewers pitcher Tony Fossas (who also pitched for a host of teams such as the Yankees, Cardinals, and Mariners), Aaron Fossas.

Fossas allowed Shaw to move up to second before Joe Cronin hit a fly ball to right.  The fly was deep enough to score Hennessy on a sacrifice, and the Eagles won their "home opener" in dramatic fashion.

Earlier in the game, Wake Forest took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third off of starter but BC responded in the bottom of the inning on an RBI hit by Gabriel Hernandez, who extended his hitting streak to seven games in the process

Fischer (2-2) was tabbed with the loss after throwing eight sterling innings and allowing just the two runs while striking out four.  Fossas was officially credited with one-third of an inning due to his retirement of Cronin via the fly ball.

For the Eagles, in the first game, John Gorman threw six innings and allowed just the one run on two hits.  He struck out four and walked two while facing just three over the minimum in his work.  Boston College relieved him with Steve Green, who threw two-thirds of an inning.  Luke Fernandes threw an inning and a third, while John Nicklas (1-1) picked up the win in the final inning of work.  BC pitching combined for a six-hit performance.

The momentum, unfortunately, did not carry over into the second game of the doubleheader, though, as the Deacons scored six runs off starter Andrew Chin and reliever Eric Stevens to pull away with a 6-2 victory.  BC had just four hits in the second game off of three Wake Forest pitchers, with all six runs scored before Birdball got on the board.

For BC in the second game, they were able to strike in the bottom of the sixth and ninth, but their four hits came from single strikes spread through the lineup.  Hernandez saw his hitting streak come to an end as John Macleod (3-1) struck out nine and only walked a few in seven innings of work.

Jesse Adams, Eric Stone, and Nick Poore combined for the final three innings of work for BC.

The Eagles (7-13, 1-7 ACC) and Deacons (14-9, 4-4 ACC)play the rubber match on Saturday at 1 PM from Bryant University.