Tigers take series from Huskies, off to third-best start in program history |
CLEMSON – Clemson is off to its third-best start in program history after a dominant 10-4 win over Northeastern on a cold and blustery Saturday afternoon at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
The Tigers improved to 14-0. Clemson's only other better starts were in 1992 when the Tigers began the season 17-0 and in 1977 when they started a whopping 26-0. The Northeastern Huskies fell to 6-7-1. Clemson starting pitcher Nick Hoffman pitched seven strong innings giving up just four runs on ten hits while walking one and striking out four. He threw 97 total pitches – 64 for strikes. Billy Barlow and Ricky Williams combined for the final two innings. Every starter in Clemson's lineup had a hit by the seventh inning. Cooper Ingle led Clemson, going 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, two RBI, and two runs scored. Benjamin Blackwell added three hits, and Chad Fairey added two hits as the only other Tigers with multiple hits. Corey DiLoreto led off the second inning with a single through the left side and advanced to second on a groundball. Luke Beckstein roped the 3-1 pitch to centerfield to plate DiLoreto and give Northeastern a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Bryar Hawkins got Clemson's first hit of the game with an infield single and advanced to second on Max Wagner's five-pitch walk. Chad Fairey hit a grounder past the first baseman to plate Hawkins and put runners on the corners with just one. Jonathan French's perfectly executed safety squeeze scored Wagner and gave Clemson a 2-1 lead at the end of the second inning. An error and a hit-by-pitch put Dylan Brewer and Tyler Corbitt on first and second for Ingle, who rifled a single past the third baseman to score Brewer from second and give Clemson a 3-1 lead in the third inning. Northeastern cut Clemson's lead to 3-2 in the fourth with a Max Viera RBI double in the left-field gap to score Mike Sirota from second base. Clemson got the run back on an RBI Corbitt's single to center to score French, who reached base on a fielder's choice to third. The Tigers led the Huskies 4-2 after four innings. Ingle led off the fifth inning with a rocket over the left-centerfield wall for his second home run of the season. Wagner laced a 1-0 pitch to centerfield for a one-out double and scored on French's single to left-center. Brewer followed with a hit to shallow centerfield that fell between three defenders allowing French to score from second and giving Clemson a 7-2 lead after five innings. Northeastern starting pitcher Sebastian Keane was pulled in favor of Dennis Colleran after Brewer's double. Keane gave up six runs – five earned – on eight hits while striking out five and walking one in 4 1/3 innings. Keane threw 100 total pitches – 66 for strikes. The Huskies cut into Clemson's lead with a Sirota two-run home run to make it a 7-4 Tigers' advantage in the six innings. Ingle doubled down the third baseline and advanced to third when Bryar Hawkins reached base on a fielding error by the first baseman. French singled through the left side to plate both runners and give the Tigers a 9-4 lead. Clemson added to its lead – making it 10-4 – in the seventh on a Caden Grice homer to left field – his fourth of the season. Clemson and Northeastern conclude the series at noon on Sunday. The Tigers will host Georgia State Tuesday at 6 p.m. #Clemson is 14-0 to start the season!! ???? Solid outing from @_nickhoffmann ?? CADEN GRICE GOES OPPO ??@CadenGrice3 goes yard for his fourth home run of the year!! .@frenchjonathan_ DOES IT AGAIN!!!! ??????
Clemson’s 14-0 start is its best start to a season since 1992, when it started 17-0. pic.twitter.com/VNKsKgbreB
7.0 IP
7 H
4 R
1 BB
4 K
Retired the last six batters he faced ??
T8 || NOR 4, CU 10 pic.twitter.com/jfrZ1Hw8CV
?? 334 ft
?? 90 mph
B7 || NOR 4, CU 10
?? https://t.co/fVLF40yCSa pic.twitter.com/NZ5iF6arHs
French now has a career-high four RBIs on the day!!!! ??
B6 || NOR 4, CU 9
?? https://t.co/fVLF40yCSa pic.twitter.com/SP6e5SLE3h
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