Friday did not go as planned for Boston College baseball, as the Eagles lost 12–5 to Pittsburgh. Saturday’s and Sunday’s games of BC’s road ACC series, however, told a much different story.
BC (11–7, 2–4 Atlantic Coast) picked up an early 2–0 lead in Sunday’s game following a run from Patrick Roche, followed by a score from Nick Wang after Vince Cimini singled through the right side. Pittsburgh (10–7, 1–5), meanwhile, took until the bottom of the fifth inning to pick up a run and ultimately fell 7–3—giving the Eagles their first conference win of the season.
In the third inning, Cimini hit a home run to right center to earn both him and Kyle Wolff home runs, putting BC up 4–0.
Pittsburgh responded in the bottom of the bottom of the sixth, when Luke Cantwell hit a single to center field to score Dom Popa and make the score 5–1. The Panthers held BC scoreless in the top of the sixth, then Ryan Zuckerman hit a single to center field in the bottom of the inning that picked up two runs. The Eagles headed into the seventh with a 5–3 lead.
Cameron Leary’s seventh inning homer revived the Eagles, giving them a 6–3 lead they would not relinquish. Eric Schroeder’s pitching in the bottom of the seventh held the Panthers scoreless.
In the top of the eighth, Adam Magpoc replaced Owen DeShazo at center field. Magpoc doubled down the right field line, scoring Cimini to put the Eagles up 7–3.
The Eagles did not allow the Panthers to score for the remainder of the game, and ultimately walked away with their second conference win of the season.
Their first conference win came on Saturday, in BC’s second game of its series with Pittsburgh.
In the top of the first inning of Saturday’s game, Cimini’s single advanced Wolff to third and allowed Roche to score, giving the Eagles their first lead of the game—a lead they would not give up in BC’s 16–10 win.
Magpoc then doubled down the right field line, advancing Cimini to third and scoring Wolff to put the Eagles up 2–0. Pittsburgh’s Jayden Melendez stopped the Eagles from running away with the lead with a homer to left field in the bottom of the first, scoring himself and Cantwell to tie things up headed into the second.
Wang struck back in the second inning with a double to right center that scored Roche and put the Eagles up 3–2. Then, Cimini’s home run in the third gave BC a two-run lead.
The Eagles appeared to run away with the game after that point, scoring eight runs in the top of the fourth behind two runs from Leary. But Pittsburgh started its resurgence beginning in the sixth inning.
Justin Fogel started things off in the bottom of the inning with a home run, cutting BC’s lead to 10 runs.
In the top of the seventh, Cam Caraher reached first base on a fielder’s choice, scoring Cimini to extend the Eagles’ lead to 10. The Panthers scored three in the bottom of the inning, however, behind a home run from Tyler Bischke that got Fogel and Cantwell through home base to cut BC’s lead to seven.
Pittsburgh managed to keep the Eagles scoreless through the top of the eighth, and C.J. Funk slammed a homer in the bottom of the inning that scored Popa and himself to cut BC’s lead to 15–10.
But that would be the last of the Panthers’ scoring. In the ninth inning, the Eagles’ Chris Markovich scored on a balk to cap off the day’s scoring.
