CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Freshman Luke Fox pitched a seven-inning gem while senior Joey Loperfido was stellar in the batter’s box as ninth-seed Duke topped No. 8-seed Virginia, 4-2, in the 2021 ACC Baseball Championship Semifinal on Saturday afternoon at Truist Field.
Duke (31-20) advances to the ACC Baseball Championship title game for the first time in program history. The Blue Devils extended their current winning streak to 11 consecutive games for the third-longest active winning streak in the country and the longest by an ACC school this season.
Loperfido led Duke at the plate as he finished 4-for-5 and was a triple shy of the cycle with two home runs. It was his first game in his career that he had multiple home runs in a single game.
Fox was stellar on the mound in his ACC Championship debut. He allowed just two runs on eight hits and no walks in seven innings of work. The southpaw from Waukesha, Wis., also fanned seven in his time on the hill. He earned the win and improved to 2-2 on the season.
Loperfido wasted no time to give Duke the lead. On just the third pitch of the game, the senior from Haddonfield, N.J., blasted a ball over the left field wall for a leadoff solo homer and to give Duke a 1-0 lead.
Duke’s center fielder did it once again in the third to begin the inning. Loperfido led off the frame with almost an identical homer as he did in the first with an opposite-field solo shot to left. Junior Ethan Murray followed suit in the next at-bat, hitting a solo home run to center field and expanding Duke’s lead to 3-0.
Virginia responded with a solo home run of their own in the bottom of the third before adding another run to pull within one, 3-2.
Duke tacked on another run in the fifth. Seniors Michael Rothenberg and Chris Crabtree recorded back-to-back doubles with one out to put runners on second and third. A Virginia error allowed Rothenberg to score.
Redshirt sophomore Jimmy Loper and sophomore Marcus Johnson closed for Duke after Fox’s impressive start. Each of the relievers faced the minimum three batters in hitless eighth and ninth innings, respectively.
Duke advances to the title game of the 2021 ACC Baseball Championship on Sunday at noon. The Blue Devils will face the winner of second-seed NC State versus third-seed Georgia Tech. The championship game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
Postgame Notes:
- Loperfido recorded a home run in each of his first two at-bats, marking the first game in his career with multiple home runs. He hit two long balls in just five pitches at the plate (1-1, 0-1).
- It was the ninth game this season in which a Blue Devil had multiple home runs.
- Murray’s home run was his second of the season, with the first also being at the ACC Championship in Duke’s first game of pool play against Florida State.
