April 2, 2006
Box Score
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland Terrapins downed No. 3 Georgia Tech, 8-5, on Sunday afternoon at Shipley Field, clinching the series, two games to one. Seven straight hits to start the game turned into six first-inning runs as Maryland (13-17, 6-9 ACC) shot ahead early and cruised past the Yellow Jackets (22-6, 6-6) for the second straight day.
Maryland secured its first series victory over a ranked Atlantic Coast Conference opponent since the weekend of May 2-4, 2003, when the Terps defeated No. 5 NC State twice in College Park. It is also the first series the Terps have taken from Georgia Tech since the league began playing three-game sets in 1990.
Five Terps turned in multi-hit performances at the plate, led by left fielder Matt Maropis, who went 3-for-4 on the day with an RBI and two runs. Junior Casey Baron (1-2) started on the mound for Maryland, yielding four runs (three earned) on seven hits in five innings en route to his first win of the season. Seth Overbey gave up one run on two hits to go along with three strikeouts in three innings of work out of the bullpen and Brett Cecil tossed a perfect ninth to pick up his record-tying seventh save of the season and second of the weekend.
After Baron held Tech scoreless in the top of the first, Maryland came out swinging in the bottom of the inning. Leadoff man Maropis singled up the middle to start the barrage and moved to second on a bunt hit by shortstop Steve Braun. An infield single by first baseman Gerry Spessard gave Maryland the bases loaded for cleanup hitter Dan Melvin. On a 1-1 offering from starter Ryan Turner (2-1), the second baseman singled to right, bringing in Maropis to make it 1-0. Another base hit to left by third baseman Mike Murphy gave the Terps a two-run lead and a single to center by Chad Durakis put Maryland up, 3-0, still with none down. Following yet another RBI single for the Terps by Jordan Wilson, Georgia Tech pulled Turner before he would record a single out. Center fielder Nick Jowers capped the inning with a two-run base hit off of reliever Lee Hyde, giving the Terps a 6-0 advantage.
Maryland added to its lead in its next at bat. For the second straight inning, Maropis led off with a base hit and moved to second on a four-pitch walk to Braun. A throwing error by Hyde on a sacrifice bunt by Spessard allowed Maropis to score, making it 7-0.
The Yellow Jackets cracked the scoreboard in the top of the third. After drawing a leadoff walk, second baseman Mike Trapani advanced to third on a throwing error by Melvin, who was attempting to convert a double play. Trapani later came home on a groundball to the right side by Danny Payne, as Baron was charged with an unearned run. Maryland would get the run right back, however, when Wink Nolan scored on a sacrifice fly by Maropis in the bottom of the inning to push the Terp lead back to seven.
Georgia Tech closed the gap to four on a two-run homer to left by Wes Hodges in the top of the fifth and made it a three-run game after Payne doubled and scored on a base hit by catcher Matt Weiters off Overbey in the eighth. But Cecil came on in the top of the ninth, retiring the side in order, including two on strikeouts, to lock up the victory. For the sophomore southpaw, his team-leading seventh save of the year ties him for the single season school record with four other pitchers. Right-hander Ken Beck was the most recent Terp reliever to reach the mark, doing so in 2002.
Maryland will host Towson at Shipley Field on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. before heading down to Clemson, S.C. for a three-game set with the Tigers next weekend.
