With college baseball home run rates at historic highs, it’s easy to see how the long ball has developed into a reliable formula for winning games.
Not for Boston College baseball head coach Todd Interdonato.
“Certainly the plate discipline and the baserunning are more sustainable than hitting the ball out of the ballpark,” Interdonato said.
The Eagles (7–3) put that multifaceted offensive approach on display Tuesday night in a 14–7 win at North Carolina Wilmington (6–7), with their 14 runs coming in a variety of ways. BC’s explosive offensive showing marked the third time this season it scored 10 or more runs in a game, with all three of those games resulting in Eagles’ victories.
BC scored runs in all but two innings, with RBIs coming from six players.
“We feel like our lineup is dangerous,” Interdonato said. “The way we talk about it is if we play really good baseball and make really good decisions at the plate, run the bases well, then hopefully the talent kind of piles on top of that. And I think tonight was a really good example.”
Interdonato put the ball in Sean Hard’s hands to open the game for the first time all season, but the Seahawks immediately put Hard to work after Alec DeMartino launched a two-run homer in the bottom of the first inning.
“The home run they hit off Sean, he was in a two-strike count, but Sean misses location with that breaking ball and he jumped it,” Interdonato said.
The Eagles, however, were quick to respond, punching back with eight straight runs in the second and third innings. Half of those runs came off shrewd baserunning, including a perfectly executed first-and-third rundown in the top of the third.
The Seahawks bats refused to relent, though, and they tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the third off a pair of solo home runs. All seven of UNC Wilmington’s runs came as a result of homers, with the Seahawks recording five total in the game.
“I just felt like they were really good when they got into good hitter’s counts,” Interdonato said.
But each time UNC Wilmington responded, Cameron Leary intervened for the Eagles to maintain comfortable breathing room. The senior outfielder notched a pair of home runs in the evening, along with a walk.
“He’s just done a really good job so far this year just maturing his at-bats,” Interdonato said.
With Leary taking care of the offense, Eric Schroeder ate up innings, finishing the game with a team-high 2.1 innings pitched, allowing just one earned run, while Brian McMonagle earned his first win of the season.
After Leary’s second homer of the game, BC right-hander Jordan Fisse entered the game and punched out the side in the bottom of the eighth—a performance especially meaningful, according to Interdonato, after his five-run showing on Sunday against VCU.
“Him just being able to go back out in his next appearance, 48 hours later, and have the command and the confidence—I just thought that was a really good step for his maturity,” Interdonato said.
After the Eagles added two more runs off a pair of singles in the top of the ninth, freshman Gavin Hasche took the hill in the bottom of the ninth and followed up Fisse’s performance by also striking out the side.
The win marks BC’s fifth in its last six games, as the Eagles look toward conference play on Friday at NC State.
“We’re still learning who we are and we’re still learning what we do, but it’s time to go into the league,” Interdonato said.
