Instant Replay: Clemson 11 Georgia Tech 6
By: trey-mccurry April 1, 2017

ATLANTA, GA — TCI looks back at Clemson’s 11-6 win over Georgia Tech on Friday night at Russ Chandler Stadium.

What happened?

The Tigers (23-4, 9-1 ACC) took the game’s first lead thanks to a Grayson Byrd solo homer in the top of the third inning. The Yellow Jackets (14-10, 3-7 ACC) answered right back with a run on three hits in the bottom of the frame. Clemson regained the lead in the fourth with five runs, all on two outs. Reed Rohlman and Jordan Greene started the rally with two-out singles followed by back-to-back walks to Byrd and Chase Pinder pushed the first run across and make it 2-1. Logan Davidson and Chris Williams then each hit two-run singles and stretched the lead to 6-1. The Tigers added to their lead in the sixth as Byrd led off with a single followed by a RBI single from Pinder, a RBI double from Seth Beer, and a RBI single from Cox to make it 9-1. Georgia Tech cut the deficit to 9-3 in the sixth with two runs, but Clemson added three key insurance runs in the ninth behind a two-run double from Williams. The Yellow Jackets staged a mini rally in the bottom of the ninth, scoring three runs on four hits, but the Tigers took game one of the series with an 11-6 win.

Game-Changing Moment:

The game changed in the third and fourth innings. Georgia Tech answered Clemson’s first run and looked poised to take the lead with runners on first and second with only one out. However, a strikeout and groundout ended the threat. In the following half inning, a double play ball gave the Tigers two quick outs before the next seven batters reached and five runs crossed the plate.

What went right?

The offense was clicking on all cylinders as Clemson had 18 hits and eight of the nine starters reached base at least twice. Greene and Byrd had a team-best three hits each and Williams had a game-high four RBI. Charlie Barnes turned in another good start, allowing three runs on six hits and a walk with seven strikeouts in 5.2 innings to earn his third win. Patrick Andrews had his best outing of the year with 2.1 scoreless innings of one-hit ball.

What went wrong?

Despite scoring 11 runs, the Tigers still stranded 12 runners on base so they could have had more runs. Clemson also struggled to close out the game, allowing three ninth inning runs to make the game look closer than it actually was.