Virginia Tech Baseball Storms From Behind To Take Game 2 Against Rutgers

Virginia Tech baseball storms from behind to force rubber match vs Rutgers. Read more below.

Virginia Tech Athletics

Blacksburg, Va. — Ethan Ball delivered a walk-off, two-run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning as Virginia Tech rallied past Rutgers 9-8 on Saturday afternoon at English Field.

“He’s got light-tower power,” infielder Anderson French said about Ball. “Anytime the game’s on the line... I want him in the box.”

Ball’s 423-foot blast to center field capped a four-run 10th inning for the Hokies (5-1) and erased an eighth-inning deficit after Rutgers (4-2) had scored three runs in the top half of the frame. The comeback secured Virginia Tech’s fifth win of the season in a game that featured five lead changes and 23 combined hits.

𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙖 𝙂𝘼𝙈𝙀 - 𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙖 𝙒𝙄𝙉 😱

≫ @DeltaDentalofVA#Hokies 🦃⚾️ pic.twitter.com/g8NerVL7BN

— Virginia Tech Baseball (@HokiesBaseball) February 22, 2026

“I think that’s a tough team. They’re good,” said Virginia Tech head coach John Szefc. “When you’re playing close games like this, it’s going to make you better for what we have coming. We’ve got a lot coming, but we’ve still got to get through this. This is good for us. These guys are good.”

Rutgers struck first in the opening inning against Virginia Tech starter Griffin Stieg. Peyton Bonds singled and later scored on a double play ball off the bat of Charlie Meglio. The Scarlet Knights added an unearned run later in the frame when Tristan Salinas reached on a dropped infield pop-up, allowing Trey Wells to score and make it 2-0.

Virginia Tech answered immediately in the bottom half. Sam Grube and Owen Petrich each singled before French delivered a two-run single to right field, tying the game at 2-2.

After a scoreless second, Rutgers regained control in the third. Meglio doubled and Wells followed with an RBI double to left. Carreras later added a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 4-2.

Stieg settled in to post a scoreless fourth before Chase Swift replaced him in the fifth. Stieg allowed four runs — three of which were earned — on seven hits across 4.2 innings, striking out four.

“It wasn’t his best,” Szefc said. “But he competed. He gave us what he had and kept us in the game.”

Virginia Tech trimmed the deficit in the fifth when Grube launched a 399-foot solo home run to right field, his second of the season, cutting the lead to 4-3.

Rutgers responded in the sixth. Ryan Jaros connected on a 401-foot solo homer to left-center off Swift — his first allowed run and baserunner of the season — extending the advantage to 5-3.

Swift went on to finish with 2.2 innings pitched, allowing one earned run and striking out six of the ten batters he faced.

“He’s been outstanding,” Szefc said. “His changeup might be the best pitch on our staff. Especially against right-handed hitters, it might be the best pitch we have.”

The Hokies threatened in the sixth, placing runners on first and third with two outs, but Vincent Borghese worked out of the jam to preserve the two-run margin.

Logan Eisenreich took over on the mound for Virginia Tech in the eighth and kept Rutgers off the board for his first two innings of work, setting up a dramatic finish.

Trailing 5-3 entering the ninth, the Hokies mounted a rally against Borghese. Grube doubled to right-center and Petrich followed with an RBI single to left, bringing Virginia Tech within one. After Ethan Ball walked and pinch-runner Willie Hurt advanced, French drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the game at 5-5.

Rutgers escaped further damage when Tyler Kane entered the game for Jason Massick with a 2-2 count to Pete Daniel in the ninth. Kane used one pitch and struck out Daniel.

In the 10th, Rutgers regained the lead. Julius Rosado singled and Carreras followed with a base hit. Jaros drove in a run with a single before Peyton Bonds drew a bases-loaded walk. A wild pitch later in the inning allowed another run to score, giving the Scarlet Knights an 8-5 advantage.

Virginia Tech responded emphatically in the bottom half.

Hudson Lutterman ignited the rally with a 344-foot solo home run to left field, his first of the season, cutting the deficit to 8-6.

“That means the world for him,” Ball said. “That’s exactly what we needed right there. He came in, took a good swing and got it to the next guy. He deserves that.”

In the next at bat, Grube homered for the second time in the game, trimming the lead to 8-7. He finished 4-for-5 and was just a triple short of the cycle.

“He’s one of our best players,” Szefc said. “He might be one of our most valuable players because he’s multi-positional. When he walks up there, you feel pretty good about the at-bat.”

After Nick Locurto worked a pinch-hit walk, Ball stepped to the plate against Jordan Saviñon and delivered the decisive blow, driving a 3-2 pitch over the wall in center field for the walk-off two-run homer. The homer was Ball's first hit of the day.

Ball finished 1-for-5 with the game-winning home run and two RBIs. French added three RBIs on two hits, while Petrich recorded two hits and a run scored.

“He’s one of the most mature freshmen I’ve ever seen,” Grube said. “I had full trust in him.”

Rutgers totaled 12 hits, led by Bonds’ three-hit performance. Jaros homered and drove in two runs, while Meglio and Wells each contributed key extra-base hits earlier in the contest.

Brendan Yagesh (1-0) earned the win in relief for Virginia Tech, recording the final out of the 10th inning after replacing Aiden Robertson. Saviñon (0-1) took the loss for Rutgers.

Virginia Tech finished with 11 hits and overcame 11 runners left on base, capitalizing on late opportunities to complete the comeback.

“You get a winner-take-all game in this series. It’s going to be freezing cold tomorrow, but good — the more uncomfortable we are, the better. It’s going to make us better.”

The two teams will play a rubber match on Sunday at noon.