Duke baseball edges Virginia, 5-4, wins first game of Charlottesville Super Regional

Duke baseball took a one-run game into the bottom of the ninth. The Blue Devils were on the road, knee-deep in their bullpen and facing Virginia’s eighth, ninth and leadoff batters.

It’s the super regional round of the NCAA Tournament. Of course there was drama.

Down to their final out, the Cavaliers had runners on first and second with power hitter Jake Gelof at the plate. On a 2-1-count, Gelof lofted a deep fly ball to left — just not deep enough. Barely. Duke outfielder Tyler Albright, pressed up against the wall, snagged the ball, allowing Duke to hang on for a 5-4 win.

“Off the bat, I was a little nervous,” said Damon Lux, who watched the winning catch from right field. “My throat kind of dropped into my stomach, but we made the play and got out of it.”

The Blue Devils will face the Cavaliers again Saturday. One more win, and Duke will advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. One more loss for Virginia, and its promising season is over.

Duke coach Chris Pollard started freshman Andrew Healey in the series opener, after admitting he was still deciding between his two young starters. Pollard only had the freshman pitch three innings before starting up the bullpen, but Healey picked up three strikeouts after facing 12 batters.

Pollard used five pitchers in Game 1 for a combined eight strikeouts, heavily relying on the bullpen once again. Duke reliever Fran Oschell III picked up the win after pitching 2.2 innings with three strikeouts. He’s now 6-0 this season.

The win gives freshman closer James Tallon the program record for single season saves, with the freshman recording his 12th of the season.

So while the young arms led the defense, the veterans picked it up in the batter’s box.

Although MJ Metz or Alex Stone didn’t hit any home runs like they did in regionals, the majority of the Blue Devils’ scoring came from the bottom of the lineup. Albright, Lux and Luke Storm all stepped up to the plate throughout the game, balancing out the lack of scoring from the top of the order.

It helped that the Blue Devils’ dugout never let up the energy, jumping and dancing around at any chance they could to keep the starting nine loose — Duke’s personal style of baseball.

“We don’t get down, we don’t get tight when we’re losing in a tight-game situation,” Lux said. “Everybody’s just keeping us in the ballgame and breathing life into us.”

The back-and-forth on offense began with Lux’s two-run shot into left-center in the top of the third. The Cavaliers didn’t allow the Blue Devils to get too comfortable, when Ethan O’Donnell gave teammate Colin Tuft enough time to score in the bottom of the same inning.

Virginia’s biggest moment came in the bottom of the sixth, scoring three to take its first lead of the game after loading the bases. Oschell III worked his way out of the jam and keep things at 4-3, paving the way for the Blue Devils’ game-winner just two innings later.

Going into the top of the eighth, the Cavaliers’ home-field advantage was clear — Virginia had an 81-game winning streak when leading after the seventh inning, but that didn’t intimidate Duke.

“Nobody’s scared of the moment, top to bottom,” Storm said. “And I think we’ve stayed true to who we were.”

Duke loaded the bases in the eighth inning with one out, and playing a bit of small ball, Jay Beshears and Giovanni DiGiacomo scored the tying and winning runs, respectively. Long gone were the “U-V-A” and “let’s go Hoos” chants, now completely silenced. Instead, the corner of blue and white began taking over Disharoon Park.

“They’re such an easy team to root for,” Pollard said.

With three outs to go, Pollard called on Tallon to wrap things up. The freshman hadn’t pitched in two weeks and was faced with pitching against two All-Americans. The first two outs went off without a hitch, but the Cavs put two aboard before Tallon induced the loud, final out.

Game 2 on Saturday between Duke and Virginia is scheduled to begin at noon.

“They just don’t flinch,” Pollard said. “They’ve been really good all year, taking a punch and dusting off to stay in the fight.”