Miami Hurricanes take Game 1 of doubleheader at Pittsburgh, 9-4, behind strong Hugus pitching, second inning Tanner Smith grand slam
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The University of Miami baseball team (16-15, 3-7 ACC) took game one of Friday’s doubleheader against the Pittsburgh Panthers, 9-4, at Charles L. Cost Field. A grand slam from Tanner Smith in the second inning, paired with a strong 107-pitch performance by Griffin Hugus, paved the way for a Miami victory.
Miami right-hander Griffin Hugus (4-3) kept Pitt’s bats at bay for most of the game, tossing 6.2 innings while allowing just two earned runs on seven hits and striking out seven. The transfer from Cincinnati silenced the Panthers (16-13, 3-7 ACC) in the middle innings, retiring ten-straight.
Pittsburgh starter Patrick Gardner (2-2) struggled to find his rhythm early and took the loss after surrendering four earned runs in four innings of work. The Pittsburgh pitcher allowed four hits, walked two, and struck out three, throwing 80 pitches in his outing.
In the top of the third, catcher Tanner Smith belted a 398-foot shot over the left field fence to plate four Hurricanes, registering Miami’s fourth grand slam of the season. Smith’s second homer on the season gave Miami a 4-1 lead after two innings.
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After an early cushion in the second inning from key hits from Ogden and Smith, Dorian Gonzalez Jr. added an RBI double and reached base three times, while Derek Williams tallied two hits and scored twice. With three runs in the eighth and two in the ninth, Miami looked to their bullpen to finish the job.
The bullpen did just that with right-handed pitchers Brian Walters and Alex Giroux combining to secure the final six outs after Will Smith bridged the seventh. Giroux allowed a run in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough to derail the Hurricanes’ bounce-back effort.
Game two of the three-game series is scheduled to start at 4:55 p.m. and will be broadcast on ACCNX.
