Georgia Tech stayed alive in its first elimination game at the NCAA regional in Gainesville, Fla., but now has to forge the rest of the way without its ace.
The Yellow Jackets defeated Bethune-Cookman 12-3 on Saturday afternoon at Florida’s McKethan Stadium, supported by seven innings from All-ACC starter Brandon Gold.
Tech will play the loser of Saturday night’s Florida-Connecticut matchup at noon Sunday in a second elimination game. The winner of the noon game will play the Florida-Connecticut winner at 6 p.m. Sunday in the regional championship game, needing to give that team two losses, one Sunday and another Monday.
In electing to go with Gold on Saturday, coach Danny Hall reduced his options for the remainder of the regional. Gold entered the game with a 2.38 ERA and an 8-3 record. The remainder of the staff has an ERA of 5.20. They’ll be charged with winning three more games and beating Florida, which is the tournament’s top overall seed and 30-4 at home, at least once.
Star reliever Matthew Gorst, who has an ERA of 0.40 and threw six pitches Friday in the loss to Connecticut, will undoubtedly figure prominently. Another is Keyton Gibson (3.59 ERA), who threw one inning and 11 pitches against Bethune-Cookman.
On Saturday, the Jackets (37-24) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second after a bases-loaded walk by Grant Wruble and then a run-scoring fielder’s choice by Arden Pabst. The Jackets broke a 3-3 tie with three runs in the fifth on a bases-loaded single by Tristin English for two runs and a ground out by Kel Johnson that drove in another. Johnson, a first-team All-ACC outfielder, hit sixth in the lineup in the midst of a slump.
In 58 games this season before Saturday, Johnson hit cleanup in 56 and third in the other two. He was 0-for-5 on Saturday. Second baseman Wade Bailey was 4-for-5 with two doubles and three runs scored.
Tech exploded for six more runs in the top of the ninth, with English (hitting cleanup for only the fifth time this season) hammering a three-run home run.
Gold (9-3) gave up seven hits — six of them singles — and walked four while striking out five. He threw 107 pitches.
Bethune-Cookman (29-27) was eliminated.
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