Virginia Tech turned English Field into a launching pad Tuesday evening, putting together one of its most complete performances of the season in a dominant 14-1 dismantling of James Madison. The Hokies (23-20) spread the damage across all seven innings, collecting 16 hits and drawing seven walks to win their seventh game in their last nine.
Madden Clement, who has settled into the role of Virginia Tech's designated midweek starter in recent weeks since returning from injury, opened the game and navigated a scoreless first inning despite two Dukes (18-25) runners getting on base.
The offense, however, wasted no time making his job easier. Sam Grube drew a leadoff walk and advanced on a wild pitch, and after Henry Cooke worked a free pass, Ethan Ball loaded the bases. Nick Locurto then laced a two-RBI single through the left side, plating Grube and Cooke to give Tech an early 2-0 lead.
The second inning is where Virginia Tech put the game away in a hurry. Owen Petrich doubled to left to open the frame and Treyson Hughes followed with a walk. Grube then singled up the middle to plate Petrich, and Cooke grounded out to bring Hughes home. Then Ball stepped in and made the loudest statement of the night — launching a 423-foot home run to center field, his 11th of the season and a three-run shot that cleared the bases and pushed the Hokies to a 7-0 advantage. It was a mammoth blow from a freshman who has turned into one of the hottest hitters in the ACC this month, with six home runs in April alone.
Head Coach John Szefc attributed Ball's surge to a refined approach in the batter's box.
"I think he's laying off more changeups down in the zone — he's become a better two-strike hitter," Szefc said. "A good changeup is gonna tie anybody up really, but he's starting to recognize that pitch better."
JMU managed its lone run in the top of the third when Ike Schmidly singled in Reece Moody, who had reached and stolen second, making it 7-1. It was merely a footnote. Virginia Tech answered with two more in the fourth — a bunt RBI single from Treyson Hughes to score Pete Daniel, followed by a sacrifice fly from Ethan Gibson — and added three in the fifth on an RBI single from Hudson Lutterman, an RBI single from Daniel, and a sacrifice fly from Petrich. Two more crossed in the sixth on a Locurto RBI single and an unearned run off a throwing error, before the Hokies capped the scoring with a pair in the seventh.
Clement worked into the fourth inning before turning things over to a bullpen that kept JMU completely off the board the rest of the way. The early seven-run cushion, he said, made all the difference.
"It takes all the pressure off. You're given seven runs from the first — huge credit to our hitters, they made it really easy for me."
Brody Roe earned the win in relief, tossing 1.1 shutout innings and allowing no hits while striking out one.
The damage at the plate was spread across the entire lineup, with nine different players recording at least one RBI. Locurto finished 3-for-5 with three RBI. Ball went 1-for-2 with three RBI and a home run. Petrich, Cooke, Daniel, Grube, Lutterman, Hughes and Gibson all contributed to the run column in a display of the lineup-wide execution Szefc has been waiting to see materialize.
"Scoring every inning, RBIs from nine different guys — that's pretty rare to see," Szefc said. "It was just a good overall night. That's kind of what's hopefully supposed to happen."
The Hokies have now won seven of their last nine, a surge that has breathed new life into a season that stumbled out of the gate. Clement, for one, likes what he sees in the clubhouse. "We're starting to turn it on right now," he said. "Hopefully, we can keep that going. The hitters are starting to figure it out just as much as the pitchers are."
Virginia Tech will now make the long cross-country trip to face California in a three-game series beginning this weekend, with a first pitch time of 9 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1.
