This past weekend, Virginia Tech traveled to Greenville, North Carolina to take part in the Keith LeClair classic. On the weekend, the Hokies went 2-1 with the loss coming to ECU on Sunday. They triumphed over Indiana State and Kent State in very comfortable fashion.
Game 1: Virginia Tech 10, Indiana State 2
The Hokies opened the weekend in Greenville by beating Indiana State 10-2. Brett Renfrow got the start on the mound and had his best outing of the season. He went five scoreless innings and struck out nine batters. Everything was working for the righty hurler in this one. The walk issue during the first couple weeks of the season seemed to be very under control, as Renfrow walked just one batter in this game.
Andrew Sentlinger was the first pitcher to be called upon for relief, where he pitched 2.2 innings and gave up the only two runs of the game. Luke Craytor was then called upon, and with the bases loaded, he struck out Carlos Pena to end the inning. Josh Berzonski then came in for the first time of the season and pitched a scoreless frame.
At the plate, the Hokies had no issues getting on base, doing so 23 times. Garrett Michel went 3-5 with two doubles and a walk against Indiana State. Jackson Cherry also had a great game, going 1-2 with a walk and 3 RBIs for Virginia Tech. The Hokies had four total extra base hits, but zero home runs in this one. The difference in the lineup structure has really shown up for the Hokies so far in 2025.
For Indiana State, the start went to Max McEwen. McEwen went three innings and allowed five runs in his outing against the Hokies. Carson Seeman came in to relieve the Sycamores starter, where he went two innings and allowed two runs. Jack Armstrong came in as the third arm for Indiana State, and threw two scoreless frames that gave the Sycamores a slim chance to get back into the game.
That slim chance that they had was washed away when Brady Banker gave up another run and gave the Hokies some much needed momentum. Cole Chace also got an opportunity to finish the game, but only got one out and gave up two runs. Cole Pacheco ended up getting the final out for Indiana State.
Indiana State struggled greatly offensively in this one, where they had no extra base hits and only two total runs scored. Their top performers were Jemery Martinez and Keegan Garis, who both went 1-3 with a walk.
My biggest takeaway from this one is the vast improvement from Brett Renfrow. In the first 2 starts, he had a total of 7 walks in 8.1 innings with a walk rate of 19.4%. Mind you, the average is *roughly* 11%. In this start, Renfrow faced 22 batters and walked just 1 of them, lowering that season long walk rate by nearly 3 points. He still has to work like this consistently, but the ability to pound the strike zone has been made noticeable.
Game 2: Virginia Tech 7, Kent State 2
In game two against Kent State, Jake Marciano took the mound for the Hokies and delivered a solid outing despite some control struggles. He went five innings, allowing two runs on two hits while striking out six and walking five. Despite his high walk count, the true freshman limited damage and kept Kent State from stringing together any big innings.
Jacob Exum came in as the first reliever and was credited with the win, going scoreless in an inning and a third. Following Exum was Brendan Yagesh, he failed to record an out but did not give up a run. Shortly after, Preston Crowl came in for another big time outing, where he threw 2.2 scoreless innings before giving the ball to Mathieu Curtis for the final out. The bullpen held strong, not allowing any runs in the final four innings.
Virginia Tech’s offense capitalized on scoring opportunities throughout this one. They totaled nine hits, including bombs from Henry Cooke and Davis Lewis. Cooke got things started early with a solo shot in the first inning, while Lewis added insurance with a deep drive to right-center in the eighth. Sam Tackett had one of the best performances at the plate, going 3-4 with two RBIs. Jackson Cherry also made an impact, driving in a run with a double as the Hokies kept pressure on Kent State’s pitching staff.
Nick Guidas got the start for Kent State and kept the game competitive through four innings. He allowed two runs on four hits while striking out three and walking one. Benny Roebuck took over in relief but ended up with the loss, surrendering two unearned runs in his two innings of work. The Hokies eventually broke the game open against Eric Chalus, especially in the later innings, with Davis Lewis’ eighth-inning home run putting the game out of reach. Brody Krzysiak put away 2 Virginia Tech’s hitters, which ultimately ended the Hokies' day offensively.
Kent State’s bats struggled to generate any offense against the Hokies pitching staff. The Golden Flashes managed just two runs on four total hits, both RBIs coming from singles by Sawyer Solitaria and Hunter Klotz. They did have some chances, drawing five walks off Hokies starter Jake Marciano, but they couldn’t turn those opportunities into big innings. Virginia Tech’s bullpen silenced Kent State’s offense down the stretch.
My ultimate takeaway from this game circle around Jake Marciano’s ability to work his way out of trouble multiple times. The ability to get out of sticky situations as a start will prove to be massive for the Hokies down the stretch if he can keep it up. These kinds of performances can create longer outings, which can save the bullpen for other big situations when they’re needed down the stretch.
Game 3: East Carolina 6, Virginia Tech 1
In the third and final game of the weekend against ECU, Cameron Lejeune got his first start for the Hokies. He gave the Hokies an opening scoreless inning, and then handed the ball to Grant Manning after completing his role as the opener. Manning had a relatively good outing, especially compared to some of the struggles he had early on in the year. He threw four innings of three-run ball while striking out nine batters. He did ultimately record the loss.
He was followed by Marcel Kulik, who got his second outing of the week following his unbelievable performance against JMU in the midweek. He threw two-thirds of an inning scoreless before being replaced by Luke Craytor. Craytor had some control issues in this outing, but still managed to keep runs off the board to keep the Hokies offense within striking distance. Mathieu Curtis relieved Craytor and got hit around quite a bit, giving up 3 runs and recording just one out before giving the ball to Luke Jackman for the final 2 outs.
Virginia Tech’s offense was silenced all game long, with its only run coming from a Sam Tackett single in the 6th inning. The top four in the Hokies lineup went a total of 2/16, with both hits coming from Jared Davis in the leadoff spot. Offensively, the Hokies had no answer for the Pirates pitching staff in this one.
Getting the start for ECU was Lance Williams. Williams went just 2.1 innings but didn’t allow a run before handing the ball to reliever Ethan Young. Young, who recorded the win, pitched 3.1 innings and gave up the only run of the day for the ECU pitching staff. Getting a 10 out save was Brad Pruett. He pitched 3.1 innings and struck out six batters while only allowing two to get on base.
The biggest takeaway for me from this game is the concern about a few of the bats. Early on, Ben Watson has only been batting .146 early on through the season. I think it would be a good idea to give him a day or two off to get right mentally as the Hokies welcome Norfolk State to English Field for a two-game midweek series.
Overview
I have an overall positive takeaway from this past weekend. The Hokies faced two regional teams from last year and went 2-1 on the entire weekend. The pitching staff looked very good, which has been a problem for the Hokies in previous years. The bats have had their issues, but at the same time, they are missing the effectiveness of what Ben Watson’s bat can be for the Hokies. The lineup is also missing Treyson Hughes due to injury.
In the season’s first edition of the RPI, the Hokies sit at 33rd. Their three losses (Bucknell, UNCG, and ECU) are sitting at 80, 32, and 109, with ECU seemingly certain to climb those rankings a lot in the coming weeks given their history.
