COLLEGE PARK, MD – Maryland baseball erased a eight-run deficit against USC Upstate, winning 11-8 at Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium on Wednesday. It was Maryland's (32-18) 18th comeback win and its largest of the season.
Maryland, ranked No. 36 in RPI, trailed 8-0 entering the bottom of the fifth inning. However, it went on to club five home runs and scored 11 unanswered runs on its way to victory.
Devin Russell notched his first career multi-home run game. He hit the Terps' first of the night, a solo shot in the fifth inning, and the last, a two-run blast in the seventh inning. He went 2-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. He has eight home runs on the season.
Kevin Keister produced the go-ahead run in the seventh inning. He hit a three-run home run for the 27th of his career, tying Scott Bronowicz (1995-98) for 14th in program history. He added a walk and now has 115 for his career, ranking fourth in program history.
Chris Hacopian and Ben Nardi hit the other home runs, each two-run homers. Hacopian has the third most home runs by a freshman in Maryland baseball program history. He also finished with multiple hits, going (2-for-5). Nardi's homer to left field in the sixth was his first career home run as a Terp.
Jacob Orr also drove in a run for the Terps. Eddie Hacopian (2-for-3) and
Brayden Martin (2-for-4) were the other Terps to record multiple hits.
Maryland deployed six different arms on the mound. But
Kenny Lippman was awarded his fourth win of the season for his 1.2 innings of scoreless and hitless play.
Logan Berrier secured his sixth save of the season by recording the final three outs.
USC Upstate is now 30-19 on the season. This was the first meeting in program history between the two schools.
Swope's Take
"I told the team that mental toughness isn't necessarily talking trash back and forth," Head Coach
Matt Swope said. "Mental toughness is
Devin Russell getting a ball called a strike on him and him hitting a home run with two strikes, getting us on the board. Mental toughness was Nardi coming in, get the big two run home run when he hadn't played in two months."
Keister On His Go-Ahead Home Run
"Me and
Jacob Orr have been struggling with not getting hits. He said 'If I get a hit here you're gonna get a hit here.' So after I saw his fall, I had a lot of confidence. I just got a pitch over the middle and happened to come through."
Breaking Down The Action
- USC Upstate took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second with back-to-back home runs by Koby Kropf and Troy Hamilton.
- The Spartans took a 6-0 lead in the third off two singles and a double.
- USC Upstate hit solo home runs in the fourth and fifth innings and took an 8-0 lead.
- Home runs by Devin Russell and Chris Hacopian in the bottom of the fifth cut the lead to 8-3. Hacopian's was a two-run homer, driving in his brother.
- Ben Nardi hit a two-run homer to left field in the sixth to make it 8-5.
- The Terps took its first lead of the game in the seventh off a three-run home run by Kevin Keister. They led 11-8 as Russell hit his second home run of the game, and Jacob Orr also hit an RBI single in the inning.
- Logan Berrier entered the game in the final inning and recorded the final three outs. He was awarded the save.
In The Record Books
- Chris Hacopian has the third-most home runs by a freshman in Maryland history with 13. He broke a tie with Kyle Rockefeller (1997) and is now chasing Maxwell Costes, who had 15 in 2019.
- Kevin Keister drew one walk and has 115 in his career, ranking fourth in program history. Maxwell Costes (2019-22) is third with 116 in his career.
- Keister hit a home run and now has 27 in his career. He tied Scott Bronowicz (1995-98) for 14th in program history. Chris Smoot (1989-92) and Kevin Smith (2015-17) are next on the list with 28 career home runs.
Numbers To Know
- 1: Devin Russell had his first career multi-home run game of his career.
- 1: Trystan Sarcone made his first start as a Terp on the mound.
- 1: Ben Nardi hit his first career home run as a Terp.
- 4: Maryland has four games on the season with four or more home runs.
- 6: Russell has six career multi-hit games, including five this season.
- 7: Chris Hacopian drove in Eddie Hacopian for the seventh time this season.
- 9: Russell has nine home runs in his career, including eight this season.
- 13: Chris Hacopian has 13 home runs in his freshman year, which is the third-most for a freshman in program history.
- 14: Brayden Martin recorded multiple hits for the 14th time in his freshman campaign.
- 18: Maryland has 18 comeback wins this season.
- 21: Chris Hacopian has 20 multi-hit games this season.
- 27: Kevin Keister has 27 home runs in his career, ranking tied for 14th in program history.
- 43: Eddie Hacopian has a hit in 43 of 50 games this season.
- 47: Eddie Hacopian recorded the 47th multi-hit game in his Maryland career, including 24 this season.
- 53: Maryland scored three or more runs in an inning for the 53 times this season.
- 115: Keister has 115 walks in his career, ranking fourth in program history.
Up Next
- Maryland travels to Boston College for a doubleheader on May 11. Game one will start at 2 p.m. and will be streamed on ACC Network and Maryland Baseball Network.
