Virginia Tech Baseball Claims 7-5 Victory Over ETSU

BLACKSBURG, Va. — Virginia Tech hosted ETSU in a midweek matchup Tuesday evening and left with a competitive 7-5 win over the Pirates.

"That's a pretty good game right there," said Hokies (4-0) head coach John Szefc during postgame media availability.

Virginia Tech gave the ball to Aiden Robertson on the mound; the first-time Division I starter initially struggled. In the first inning, Robertson yielded a pair of two-out walks, then a three-run blast to give ETSU an early 3-0 lead.

Following the difficult start, Robertson allowed just one more hit — an infield single — through the rest of his start. He finished the night with four strikeouts in as many innings.

Robertson did walk four batters on the night; this year, he's issued five walks in as many innings this season.

"He responded really well," Szefc said about Robertson's performance. "The fact that he was able to go out there and throw zeros up behind that [first inning] gave us a chance to come back."

Relieving Robertson first was Chase Swift, who added a new pitch to his arsenal — a pitch representing a mix between a slider and a cutter. Swift entered the game and struck out the first two batters he faced, eventually giving the Hokies two scoreless innings with three strikeouts.

As advertised, the Hokies' pitching staff was stellar, combining for 100 strikes on 147 total pitches.

"They're good, man," Szefc said about his staff. " After the first, we only gave up four hits and two walks... That's how you win coming from behind... if those guys don't pitch like that, then maybe it gets away from us."

Relief arms Luke Craytor and Brendan Yagesh finished the game. Craytor logged the first out, throwing one inning where he allowed three hits and a run. He also yielded a second run that was scored as unearned. The score came after second baseman Ethan Gibson was credited with a throwing error to first.

Yagesh came in and closed the game, earning his first save as a Hokie. He tossed two scoreless innings with two strikeouts and two baserunners allowed.

At the plate, Virginia Tech jumped on ETSU starter Thomas Costarelli in the second inning, scoring two runs on a Sam Gates double and a Pete Daniel single. Gates and Ethan Ball were the two Hokies to score in that inning.

The difference was made in the fourth, though. Virginia Tech put up five runs on three hits. Two runs came from a crucial difference-making play, where catcher Henry Cooke appeared to fly out to center field with two outs and two runners on. However, the ball was bobbled and dropped, allowing both center fielder Treyson Hughes and first baseman Sam Grube to score runs that made the difference in a two-run ball game.

Grube produced a strong game, going 2-for-4 with a walk and a run, continuing his strong start to the 2026 season. He's now slashing .400/.550/.600 and has logged three doubles, along with five RBI and four walks.

Gates was even better, going 3-for-4 and tallying his first hit in a Virginia Tech uniform. He was hitless in the three-game series against William & Mary; however, he's now moved his slashline up to .273/.400/.545 with a double, a triple, two RBI and three walks.

"It feels good," Gates said about being a home run away from the cycle. "Can't be too high, can't be too low."

Ethan Ball came up big as well, going 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. He has been one of Virginia Tech's top bats early in the season, leading the team in batting average at .500, with a full slashline of .500/556/.563. His double in today's game was the first extra-base hit of his collegiate career; his first seven hits were all for just a single.

"It felt pretty good," Ball said about his first career extra-base hit. "It feels good to get that out of the way."

On the game, Virginia Tech went 11-for-34 from the plate with 16 bases and seven total runs scored. Along with that, the staff pitching nine innings, allowing just two runs in the final eight, along with totalling 12 strikeouts to just five walks.

"They're good, man," Szefc said about his pitching staff.

Virginia Tech will now turn it's attention to Rutgers for a three game series over the weekend.

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