7th Inning Stretch: Heading Down to Durham (Week 15)

The Cardinals get their run in the postseason started this week, heading down to the Tar Heel State for the ACC Baseball Championship

Louisville baseball left-handed pitcher Justin West | Jared Anderson - Louisville Cardinals On SI

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - While the Louisville baseball program won't be heading into the ACC Baseball Championship on a losing streak, momentum isn't exactly on their side right now.

While the Cardinals (35-20, 15-15 ACC) were able to claim the series and regular season finale vs. Wake Forest, that was preceded by a pair of losses to the Demon Deacons to ensure a series loss, as well as a stunning midweek week to crosstown foe Bellarmine.

Louisville is still in a very good spot as it pertains to securing an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament, as their RPI on 29th is certainly enough to get in. However, considering they have lost seven of their last 10 games, their postseason outlook is dramatically different than it was just two weeks ago. After being in a position to potentially host a regional, the Cardinals could be staring at a No. 3 seed.

But first, they have their run in the ACC Baseball Championship down in Durham. Securing the No. 10 seed for the now single elimination tournament, Louisville will open up postseason play against 15th-seeded Pitt. As part of the their draw, they also have the possibility to face Duke in the second round, and Florida State in the quarterfinals.

Sure, Louisville has not had a ton of success in the ACC Baseball Championship, sporting just a 7-13 record in the event since joining the league in 2014. However, if the Cardinals have any hopes of making a deep NCAA Tournament run, it will start with a good showing here.

News & Notes

• Louisville falls is unranked across the five major collegiate baseball polls.
• Outfielder Lucas Moore ranks second nationally in stolen bases with 46, fifth in runs with 76, and 21st in hits with 83.

The Week Ahead

Neutral (Durham Bulls Athletic Park - Durham, N.C.)

• Tuesday, May 20 at 5:00 p.m. EST vs Pitt (ACCN/93.9 The Ville)
• *Wednesday, May 21 at 5:00 p.m. EST vs. Duke (ACCN/93.9 The Ville)
• *Friday, May 23 at 3:00 p.m. EST vs. Florida State (ACCN/93.9 The Ville)
• *Saturday, May 24 at 5:00 p.m. EST vs. TBD (ACCN/93.9 The Ville)
• *Sunday, May 25 at 12:00 p.m. EST vs. TBD (ESPN2/93.9 The Ville)

*If Necessary

Know The Foe

Pitt Panthers

Head Coach (school record): Mike Bell (160-173)
2025 Record (conference record): 27-26 (10-20)
All-Time Series Record: Louisville Leads 22-11

Top Performers (Hitters):

• INF Ryan Zuckerman (53 GP, 53 GS): .302/.385/.571, 13 HR, 48 RBI, 16 2B, 1 3B, 22 BB, 3 SB
• INF Luke Cantwell (53 GP, 53 GS): .332/.494/.516, 5 HR, 43 RBI, 18 2B, 1 3B, 54 BB, 6 SB
• OF A.J. Nessler (53 GP, 53 GS): .323/.435/.458, 5 HR, 43 RBI, 10 2B, 1 3B, 33 BB, 8 SB

Top Performers (Pitchers):

• LHP Ethan Firoved (22 APP, 0 GS): 3.20 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 50.2 IP, 68 K, 14 BB, .220 B/AVG
• LHP Ryan Reed (13 APP, 13 GS): 4.66 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 67.2 IP, 65 K, 24 BB, .284 B/AVG
• LHP Patrick Gardner (14 APP, 14 GS): 7.32 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 67.2 IP, 52 K, 26 BB, .283 B/AVG

Duke Blue Devils

Head Coach (school record): Chris Pollard (415-292)
2025 Record (conference record): 36-18 (17-13)
All-Time Series Record: Louisville Leads 10-6

Top Performers (Hitters):

• INF Ben Miller (54 GP, 54 GS): .330/.426/.642, 18 HR, 58 RBI, 13 2B, 27 BB, 1 SB
• OF Tyler Albright (54 GP, 54 GS): .316/.456/.531, 9 HR, 43 RBI, 9 2B, 3 3B, 43 BB, 14 SB
• INF/OF Jake Hyde (50 GP, 49 GS): .303/.420/.569, 11 HR, 60 RBI, 13 2B, 2 3B, 38 BB, 1 SB

Top Performers (Pitchers):

• LHP Reid Easterly (31 APP, 0 GS): 3.28 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 60.1 IP, 54 K, 16 BB, .231 B/AVG
• LHP Owen Proksch (16 APP, 9 GS): 4.21 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 51.1 IP, 72 K, 21 BB, .201 B/AVG
• RHP Gabe Nard (25 APP, 2 GS): 3.55 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 45.2 IP, 41 K, 14 BB, .224 B/AVG

Florida State Seminoles

Head Coach (school record): Link Jarrett (109-31)
2025 Record (conference record): 37-13 (17-10)
All-Time Series Record: Florida State Leads 37-15

Top Performers (Hitters):

• INF Alex Lodise (50 GP, 50 GS): .422/.483/.772, 17 HR, 63 RBI, 17 2B, 2 3B, 22 BB, 6 SB
• OF Gage Harrelson (50 GP, 50 GS): .340/.439/.471, 5 HR, 37 RBI, 8 2B, 2 3B, 27 BB, 13 SB
• OF Max Williams (49 GP, 49 GS): .323/.392/.626, 17 HR, 44 RBI, 9 2B, 16 BB, 2 SB

Top Performers (Pitchers):

• LHP Jamie Arnold (12 APP, 12 GS): 2.59 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 66.0 IP, 90 K, 23 BB, .197 B/AVG
• LHP Joey Volini (13 APP, 13 GS): 3.63 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 74.1 IP, 91 K, 24 BB, .228 B/AVG
• LHP Wes Mendes (13 APP, 13 GS): 4.62 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 64.1 IP, 74 K, 35 BB, .227 B/AVG

Statistical Breakdown

Rankings and Records:

	Pitt	Duke	FSU	UofL
D1Baseball Ranking	NR	NR	6th	NR
RPI	52nd	32nd	14th	29th
SOS	21st	37th	29th	22nd
Home Record	12-10	29-9	24-7	27-7
Away Record	9-15	7-9	12-6	6-12
Neutral Record	6-1	0-0	1-0	2-1

Hitting:

	Pitt	Duke	FSU	UL
Base on Balls	57th (277)	1st (373)	205th (218)	139th (245)
Batting Avg.	198th (.271)	84th (.291)	18th (.313)	34th (.306)
Home Runs	133rd (57)	14th (96)	24th (89)	62nd (71)
OBP	127th (.389)	10th (.429)	67th (.405)	69th (.405)
Runs/Game	134th (6.8)	21st (8.6)	58th (7.9)	43rd (8.1)
SLG	178th (.428)	22nd (.520)	20th (.527)	39th (.500)

Pitching:

	Pitt	Duke	FSU	UofL
ERA	180th (6.49)	53rd (4.80)	46th (4.71)	119th (5.64)
Hits/9 Innings	202nd (10.44)	33rd (8.35)	16th (7.68)	81st (9.08)
K/9 Innings	106th (8.6)	36th (9.5)	13th (10.8)	63rd (9.1)
K/BB Ratio	120th (1.85)	25th (2.57)	58th (2.23)	169th (1.60)
WHIP	179th (1.67)	26th (1.34)	41st (1.39)	156th (1.64)
BB/9 Innings	138th (4.68)	36th (3.68)	164th (4.84)	249th (5.69)

(Photo of Justin West: Jared Anderson - Louisville Cardinals On SI)

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