Strong Start Fuels Louisville's Series Opening Win vs. Clemson
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
CU | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
UL | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 0 |
W: Jared Poland (3-2), L: Mack Anglin (4-4)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Kicking off their penultimate home conference series of the regular season, the Louisville baseball program got the weekend started on the right foot, taking down Clemson 7-2 in their series opener Friday night at Jim Patterson Stadium.
Since getting swept down at Florida State, the No. 10 Cardinals (29-12, 12-7 ACC) have won five of their last six games, and now are in the driver's seat for the Atlantic Division with Notre Dame's Friday night loss. The Tigers (28-15, 6-12 ACC) suffer their first series opening loss since Apr. 8.
Starting pitcher Jared Poland (8.0 IP, 13 K, 1 BB, 3 H) set the tone early for Louisville, putting together another fantastic outing. He tossed a career-high in strikeouts, which was the most strikeouts by a Louisville player since Michael Kirian had the same amount vs. NC State in March of 2021. It was also his second career start without an earned run allowed.
The Cardinals' bats got an early start as well. Isaac Humphrey (2-3, 2 RBI, 2 2B, BB, SF) collected a sacrifice fly in the second to get the scoring started, which was then followed up with three runs in the third. Christian Knapczyk (0-2, 3 HBP) scored on a wild pitch, then Logan Beard (1-2, 2 RBI, BB) added a two-RBI single.
Two innings later, Louisville put up another three-spot for some insurance. Humphrey struck an RBI double, Ben Bianco (0-4, RBI) collected an RBI groundout, and Ben Metzinger (3-5, RBI) singled for an RBI. Following Poland's exit, Jacob Ferris (1.0 IP, 1 K, 3 H 2 ER) was tasked with tossing the ninth, breaking the shutout but clinching the win.
Next up for Louisville, they'll continue their weekend series vs. Clemson with game two. First pitch is slated for Saturday, Apr. 30 at 1:00 p.m. EST, and will be televised on ACC Network Extra and broadcast on 93.9 The Ville.
(Photo via Jared Anderson - State of Louisville)
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