Duke Earns First ACC Road Series Sweep in School History

Sunday, March 31

Atlanta

1:00 PM

Duke University

17-19, 8-4

Georgia Tech

22-16, 5-7

Duke

Georgia Tech

Duke Earns First ACC Road Series Sweep in School History

3/31/2019 7:25:00 PM | Softball

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By: Duke Sports Information

ATLANTA, Ga. – It was yet another offensive clinic from the Duke Blue Devils on Sunday, as they turned in 13 hits and a pair of home runs to defeat the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, 8-6, to complete the first ACC road series sweep in school history.

Duke (17-19, 8-4 ACC) finished the weekend with 28 runs on 41 hits to pick up its first series win against Georgia Tech (22-16, 5-7 ACC). The two totals stand as school records for an ACC series, along with the Blue Devils' 26 runs batted in and six homers.

It was a reversal of roles to start Sunday's game, as Georgia Tech opened the game with a four-run first after Duke put up five and three in the opening frame in the first two games. However, Duke would respond in the third, rallying back with five runs to take the lead. After Jazmine Moreno and Marissa Gagliano reached safely to start the inning, Rachel Abboud sent a 3-2 pitch over the wall in center to cut Tech's lead down to one. Kristina Foreman followed suit in the next at-bat, taking the first pitch she saw to left with a towering shot, evening the game at 4-4. The go-ahead run came via Raine Wilson, as she took home during a 2-6-3-4 rundown of Caroline Jacobsen between first and second.

Tech would pull one back in the fourth, but the Blue Devils answered with one of their own in the next half inning thanks to an RBI single from Wilson.

A wild pitch with a runner on second would bring home the sixth Yellow Jacket run of the day, tying the game at 6-6. That, however, would be as close as Tech would get to leading again, as Duke put two more runs up in the seventh to take the lead for good. Singles from Abboud, Foreman and Jameson Kavel loaded the bases for Wilson, who brought the game-winning run home with a base hit to center. Jacobsen would add an insurance run in the next at-bat with a sac fly to center that scored Foreman.

Up 8-6, Peyton St. George would close out the final inning of her fourth win of 2019 in impressive fashion, catching the Tech batter looking on an 0-2 pitch to seal the victory.

St. George (4-4) entered the game in the fourth, throwing the final 3.2 innings, scattering three hits and allowing just one run with four strikeouts and two walks. Shelby Walters earned the start, with Amelia Wiercioch tossing 3.0 frames in relief with two strikeouts.

Duke's offensive prowess was once again powered by a multitude of multi-hit performances, as two Blue Devils turned in three-hit showings and two others tallied a pair of hits each. Foreman went 3-for-3 at the plate to finish her weekend 7-for-11 (.636) at the plate with six runs, three RBI and two home runs, while posting a 1.182 slugging clip and .667 on-base percentage. Wilson also went 3-for-3 at the plate, while Abboud and Kavel turned in 2-for-4 showings. Abboud finished the series with a team-high six runs driven in, while Kavel wrapped up by going 7-for-12 at the plate with three RBI and a double.

Abboud and Kavel join Deja Davis as the team's leaders in multi-hit games with eight apiece. The two also kept their career-long hitting streaks alive, extending them to seven and six-straight games, respectively. Foreman extended her hitting streak to six-straight contests, while Wilson pushed hers to five straight, tying her career-best stretch.

The Blue Devils return home for a seven-game home stand, starting with a Wednesday, April 3 doubleheader against Longwood at the Duke Softball Stadium. First pitch in the twinbill is set for 5 p.m. ET, and will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra, which fans can access through WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app.

For more information on Duke softball, follow the Blue Devils on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching for “DukeSoftball”. You can also find all-access coverage of all Duke athletic programs on SnapChat by searching for “dukeathletics”.

Extra Bases

The Blue Devils finished the weekend with 41 hits, 28 runs, 26 RBI and six home runs, all program records for an ACC series.
Duke has recorded double-digit hits in five-straight games, a program-best stretch.
With three home runs on Saturday and two on Sunday, the Blue Devils have hit multiple homers in back-to-back games for the first time in program history.
The 4-7 spots of the Duke batting order led the way on Sunday, finishing a combined 10-for-14 with six runs scored, six runs driven in and two home runs.
Jameson Kavel has now hit safely in a career-long six-straight games.
With two hits each, Rachel Abboud and Jameson Kavel have tied Deja Davis for the most multi-hit games this season with eight apiece.
With her home run in the third, Kristina Foreman upped her career-high hitting streak to six-straight games.
Foreman finished the weekend leading Duke's offensive dominance, going 7-for-11 (.636) at the plate with six runs scored, three RBI and two home runs. She also turned in a scorching 1.182 slugging percentage and a .667 on-base percentage.
Raine Wilson tied her career-long hitting streak with her single in the third, stretching it to five-straight contests.
Rachel Abboud upped her career-high reached base safely streak to 23-straight games with her home run in the third. She also increased her career-long hitting streak to seven-straight games.
Abboud finished the weekend with a team-high six runs driven in.