Jackets Hold Off Bearcats In Day 2 Of Atlanta Challenge

A four-spot in the fifth inning was among the offense for the Jackets that held off a furious late inning rally from Cincinnati.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
UC	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	4	7	1
#19 GT	0	0	0	0	4	0	2	0	X	6	9	2

On day 2 of the Atlanta Challenge, the #22 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets followed up yesterday's 6-0 Opening Day win over Saint Peter's with a thrilling 6-4 victory over the Cincinnati Bearcats. Possessing a 6-1 lead heading into the eighth inning, UC attempted a comeback by plating 3 runs in the inning, but were ultimately stymied by the Jackets.

Tech was lead by left fielder Michael Guldberg at the plate and RHP Andy Archer on the mound. Guldberg went 3-4 with an RBI and a double, while Archer fanned 7 Cincinnati batters over 4.0 inning pitched out of the bullpen. Both marks for Archer were career highs.

The Bearcats wasted very little time getting to work in this game, as second baseman Jace Mercer delivered a triple in the first at-bat of the game. A groundout from left fielder Joey Wiemer sent Mercer home, and gave the Jackets their first deficit of the season.

Before the Jackets were able to crack the scoreboard themselves, they flashed the leather multiple times to keep the Bearcats from adding insurance runs. Third baseman Jackson Webb had a web gem on the hot corner to end the fourth, and outfielder Colin Hall & shortstop Luke Waddell executed a relay to perfection in the top of the fifth to deny a Cincinnati inside-the-park home run.

Georgia Tech was finally able to string together some offense in the fifth inning, plating a total of 4 runs in this frame alone. An RBI triple from Luke Waddell tied things up from Russ Chandler Stadium and forced the Bearcats to make a pitching change away from starter Nathen Kroger. 

Newly inserted UC LHP Garrett Schoenle then proceeded to allow Michael Guldberg to send home Waddell on an RBI single, then give up another run on a bases loaded wild pitch. He would get yanked himself after tossing 0.0 inning pitched, with UC RHP Zach Segal then letting another runner come home off an Andrew Jenkins sacrifice fly.

Aside from allowing a run in the opening inning, junior right-hander Jonathan Hughes had a sturdy 2019 debut. While he did allow 5 base hits over his 5.0 IP of work, he did strike out a pair of batters and did not let a single Cincinnati batter reach base on balls.

A 7th inning that saw an RBI single from third baseman Jackson Webb and an error from the Cincinnati outfield give the Jackets two more runs, but the Bearcats weren't going down without a fight. Coming out of the bullpen to start the 6th inning was redshirt junior RHP Andy Archer, who made his first appearance on the mound since May 25th 2018 vs. North Carolina. 

He would strike out a trio of batter in his first two innings, but then UC caught onto him. The Bearcats would trim the Tech lead to just 2 behind a three run 8th inning. Archer let the Bearcats bend but not break him, as he was able to deliver an inning-ending strikeout with a pair of runners in scoring position and 2 outs, then strikeout the side in the top of the ninth. 

Next up for the Jackets, they'll finish the Atlanta Challenge and host the St. John's Red Storm tomorrow at 1:00pm. It will be televised on ACC Network Extra and broadcast on WREK 91.1 FM.

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