Clemson pulled off a wild comeback against No. 25 Virginia Tech in a game packed with weird moments and missed opportunities. Down by one with two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Clemson got some unexpected help. Kier Meredith appeared to get hit in the face by a pitch, but the umps reversed it on replay, sending him back to the plate. He responded by drawing a walk. Then Dylan Brewer, 0-for-3 up to that point, came in and took what looked like another pitch to the face. This time, the ump gave him first base, though the replay was debatable. Still, Clemson had two on with two outs.
James Parker came up next, also hitless, and quickly fell behind 0-2. Virginia Tech’s pitcher tried to get him to chase a breaking ball for the strikeout but left a hanging curve over the plate. Parker crushed it for a go-ahead three-run homer. Clemson’s dugout went nuts as they flipped the game on one swing. In the top of the ninth, Clemson closer Gilbert made quick work of Virginia Tech’s lineup to seal the win. He got all three outs with strong stuff, including a nasty breaking ball for the final strikeout.
Virginia Tech had the game in their hands with four outs left and couldn’t close. Clemson, under .500 at the time, snagged a much-needed win and handed Virginia Tech a frustrating loss.