Georgia Tech Baseball: Tech Lights up St. John's 17-3

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets completely dismantled St. John's by a final score of 17-3 after sending nine guys to the plate three times during the game.

The Yellow Jackets scored all of the runs they would need in the first inning. Senior center fielder Daniel Spingola got the inning started quickly with a single into center. Following a Thomas Smith walk and Kel Johnson infield single, senior captain and designated hitter A.J. Murray came up to the plate. He hit a first-pitch sacrifice fly to right field to score the game's first run.

Two more runs would come across before sophomore third baseman Brandon Gold came to the plate. Gold slammed a three-run home run to right field.

Gold finished the game strong getting two hits in his three at-bats including his first inning home run.

Junior left-handed pitcher Jonathan King started the game for the Yellow Jackets. In his 5.0 innings of work, King allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits. He also struck out three batters and walked one. It was his first game since getting injured in just his fourth start last season.

King would get credited with the win, with St. John's starter Ryan McCormick getting the loss. McCormick had a rough start, only pitching 2.0 innings, but allowing eight runs (all earned) on seven hits before getting pulled.

The Jackets padded their lead by another nine runs in the last two innings, sending nine batters to the plate in both innings.

In the seventh, Johnson put a cap on his fantastic debut, hitting a two-run home run to right field. On the day, Johnson had four hits in his five at-bats including a ground-rule double and two infield singles. In addition to his two-run shot, Johnson added another RBI and scored two runs of his own.

In the eighth, another Tech freshman capped off a nice debut. Blake Jackson came on as a pinch hitter for Gold and hit a 1-1 pitch to right field for a solo home run.

Sophomore right-handed pitcher Ben Schniederjans and freshman righty Patrick Wiseman finished out the game for Tech on the mound.

Schniederjans pitched 3.0 innings and held the Red Storm to zero runs on two hits. He also struck out two batters while walking one.

Wiseman made his debut in the ninth inning. He gave up a hit and a walk, but struck out sophomore designated hitter Troy Dixon to end the game.

Tech gets back to the diamond for a doubleheader against the Fordham Rams tomorrow starting at noon when sophomore Ben Parr will face off against right-hander Jimmy Murphy. The final game of the Atlanta Challenge for Tech will follow that game, starting 45 minutes after its conclusion.