Tiger Baseball Team to Play Host to Virginia Tech in Three-Game Series This Weekend

March 18, 2010

Clemson vs. Virginia Tech Clemson (14-2, 3-0 ACC), ranked as high as #7 in the nation, will host Virginia Tech (13-5, 2-1 ACC) in a three-game series at Doug Kingsmore Stadium this weekend. Game times are 6:30 PM (Friday), 6:30 PM (Saturday), and 1:00 PM (Sunday). The Friday and Saturday games will be available live via webcast on TigerCast. All three games will be broadcast live on the radio by Clemson Tiger Sports Network. Live stats will be available at ClemsonTigers.com for all three games as well.

The Series Clemson and Virginia Tech have met 54 times, with the Tigers holding a 31-21-2 lead in the series dating back to 1902. Last year at Virginia Tech, the Hokies won the first two games of the series before Clemson answered with an 8-1 win in the series-finale. In 2008 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium, Clemson swept the Hokies in a three-game series at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

The Tigers hold an 18-7-1 lead over the Hokies in games played at Clemson and a 12-2 lead at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The Tigers also hold a 12-3 advantage in ACC regular-season games. Doug Kingsmore Stadium. Leggett was 1-3 against Virginia Tech as Western Carolina’s head coach, meaning is 16-6 all-time against the Hokies.

The Starting Pitchers In game-one, Virginia Tech will start junior lefty Justin Wright (2-2, 6.52 ERA) on the mound. The Montclair, VA native has made four starts for a total of 19.1 innings pitched. He has allowed 27 hits (.338 opponents’ batting average) and four walks with 15 strikeouts.

The Tigers will counter with junior lefty Casey Harman (3-0, 2.49 ERA) on Friday. The South Burlington, VT native has made four starts for a total of 21.2 innings pitched. He has allowed 18 hits (.228 opponents’ batting average) and eight walks with 17 strikeouts.

In game-two, the Hokies will send out junior righthander Jesse Hahn (4-0, 0.64 ERA) on the mound. The Groton, CT native has made four starts for a total of 28.1 innings pitched. He has yielded 17 hits (.175 opponents’ batting average) and five walks with 27 strikeouts.

Clemson will counter with sophomore lefty Will Lamb (1-0, 2.87 ERA) on Saturday. The Seaford, VA native has made three starts and one relief appearance for a total of 15.2 innings pitched. He has allowed 11 hits (.204 opponents’ batting average) and eight walks with six strikeouts.

Virginia Tech’s starter for game-three has yet to be determined.

The Tigers will start sophomore righthander Scott Weismann (2-0, 3.38 ERA) on Sunday. The Boxborough, MA native has made four starts for a total of 21.1 innings pitched. He has given up 20 hits (.238 opponents’ batting average) and six walks with 20 strikeouts.

The Hokies Virginia Tech, led by fourth-year Head Coach Pete Hughes, enters the series at #7 Clemson with a 13-5 overall record and 2-1 ACC mark after winning two of three midweek games earlier this week. Last weekend, the Hokies defeated Maryland twice in three games in Blacksburg. Virginia Tech is 3-1 on opponents’ home fields this season.

Virginia Tech is averaging 9.2 runs per game and hitting .354 with a .545 slugging percentage and .435 on-base percentage. The team has totaled 46 doubles, six triples, 23 home runs, and 19 stolen bases.

Austin Wates is hitting .468 with a homer, three triples, six doubles, 15 RBIs, a .542 on-base percentage, anad seven stolen bases. Tim Smalling is hitting .436 with three homers and 23 RBIs, while Buddy Sosnoskie is hitting .487. Steve Domecus has added six home runs and 19 RBIs as well.

The pitching staff has a 4.44 ERA and .269 opponents’ batting average along with 148 strikeouts against 55 walks in 160.0 innings pitched. In 14.0 innings pitched over 11 relief appearances, senior righthander Ben Rowen has allowed just seven hits (.146 opponents’ batting average), one run, and three walks with 22 strikeouts. He also has an 0.64 ERA and both of Virginia Tech’s saves. The Hokies are fielding at a .966 clip as well.

The Tigers Clemson, ranked as high as #7 in the nation, enters the series against Virginia Tech with a 14-2 overall record and 3-0 ACC mark after splitting a pair of midweek games, including an 11-10 loss at Charlotte on Tuesday and a 22-6 win over Georgia Southern on Wednesday. The Tigers, who are 12-0 at home, also swept N.C. State in a three-game series at home last weekend.

The Tigers are averaging 10.2 runs per contest, including 13.6 runs per game during the last seven games, and hitting .318 with a .562 slugging percentage and .428 on-base percentage this season. Clemson has also totaled 39 doubles, two triples, 31 homers, and 28 stolen bases.

Kyle Parker is hitting a team-high .424 with eight homers, 19 RBIs, 23 runs, and a .547 on-base percentage, while Jeff Schaus is batting .361 with six homers, six doubles, and a team-high 29 RBIs. Brad Miller is also hitting .364 with seven doubles.

The pitching staff has a 3.62 ERA and .242 opponents’ batting average. The staff has allowed 55 walks against 111 strikeouts, good for a 2.0-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Sophomore righthander David Haselden has not given up a hit or run in 7.1 innings pitched over three relief appearances and has a 2-0 record. The Tigers are fielding at a .955 clip as well.

Worth Noting In the last seven games, Clemson is hitting .346 with 95 runs, 17 doubles, two triples, 20 home runs, a .665 slugging percentage, 62 walks, a .479 on-base percentage, and 14 stolen bases in 15 attempts.

ACC Standings The Tigers are in first place in the ACC Atlantic Division standings with a 3-0 league record. The Tigers are ahead of three teams in the division with a 1-2 mark, Florida State, Boston College, and Maryland. N.C. State and Wake Forest are both 0-3. Clemson joins Georgia Tech as the only undefeated teams in ACC play.

Shaffer Contributing to Veteran Lineup Entering the 2010 season, Clemson returned eight starters in the field. The lone loss from 2009 was first-baseman Ben Paulsen, who was a third-round draft pick after last season. Freshman first-baseman Richie Shaffer (Charlotte, NC) has filled that role nicely in 2010.

In 15 games (12 starts), Shaffer is hitting .347 with two homers, two doubles, 11 RBIs, 15 runs, a .448 on-base percentage, and a steal. Despite coming off the bench in two of the last six games, he has hit safely in eight straight games, the longest hitting streak by a Tiger in 2010. Shaffer also leads the team with a .500 batting average with runners in scoring position. He has not committed an error in the field in 127 chances as well.

Charlotte Nips Tigers 11-10 in Back & Forth Game Zane Williams’ three-run double with two outs in the eighth inning lifted Charlotte to an 11-10 win over #7 Clemson at Charlotte, NC on March 16. The Tigers scored five runs with two outs in the fourth inning, highlighted by Kyle Parker two-run homer, to tie the score, then they scored four runs in the top of the eighth inning to take a two-run lead, capped by John Hinson’s three-run homer with two outs. But Williams came through with a clutch double down the left-field line to snap Clemson’s five-game winning streak. The two teams combined for 15 two-out RBIs and each team walked eight times.

Clemson Powers Past Georgia Southern 22-6 Behind 21 hits, including nine doubles, one triple, and six home runs, #7 Clemson blasted Georgia Southern 22-6 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on March 17. It was the most runs scored by Clemson since 2006. The Tigers scored eight runs in the first inning thanks to four home runs. The Tigers put up another eight-run inning in the sixth to put the game out of reach. Clemson hit back-to-back home runs on three different occasions, while every Tiger starter had at least one hit and every Clemson starter scored at least one run. Kyle Parker, John Nester, Addison Johnson, and Chris Epps also added one homer apiece. Mike Kent earned the win in his first career appearance, as he pitched 3.1 scoreless innings of two-hit ball in relief.