For the first time since 2014, #3 Georgia Tech Baseball won the ACC Tournament title, defeating North Carolina 13-7 in the championship game in Charlote, North Carolina on the backs of two doubles by Alex Hernandez, a homer by Ryan Zuckerman, and a clearing of the bases on three wild pitches late in the game that put Tech’s lead out of reach.
In the process, Drew Burress hit his 58th career home run, a two-run shot to left field, pasing Jason Varitek for the most in Institute history. Tech has been
playing baseball since the 1890s.
After the game, Ryan Zuckerman was named ACC Tournament MVP after a three-homer performance across Tech’s three games.
The last three teams to win both the ACC regular season and tournament championship in the same season made it to Omaha, joining North Carolina (2013), Miami (2008), and Clemson (2006) in that category. The win was Tech’s 10th ACC tournament title in program history.
Tech enters the NCAA Tournament as the national #2 seed, tied for the best in program history. UCLA is #1.
On Friday, Tech will square off against UIC in the Atlanta regional with Oklahoma and The Citadel rounding out the regional. If Tech were to advance, they would host a super regional as one of the top 8 teams in the country. Tech is one of three ACC teams hosting a regional this season (North Carolina, Florida State).
“To have a regional in Atlanta is a big deal. It’s something we don’t take lightly,” said Tech head coach James Ramsey after the regional was revealed. “I think we have a very mature group that’s mission minded that is going to be ready to play our best baseball.”
Oklahoma coming to Atlanta has an extra dose of drama, as yesterday their 17-year tenured golf coach Ryan Hybl announced he would be taking the Georgia Tech job after Bruce Heppler’s retirement.
UIC automatically qualified for the tournament as the Missouri Valley champions, The Citadel qualified as the SoCon champions, and Oklahoma is an at-large bid.
If Tech were to advance, they would face the winner of the Kansas regional, which includes the Jayhawks, Arkansas, Northeastern, and Missouri State.
Anecdotally, these guys look as ready as any team Tech has had in years to take on this regional. The atmosphere in the Fanning Center to watch the selection show was very calm and collected. While the team has known for weeks they were in the tournament and likely hosting, the fact they earned it from winning the ACC didn’t push them off the tracks. For them, Omaha is the goal, not just playing more games in Atlanta.
“The first and foremost goal we’ve had is going to Omaha and winning a national championship. We know how great we are and that’s something we set out to do at the beginning of the year,” said Drew Burress.
First pitch against UIC is Friday at 12pm on ACCN. Tickets have sold out but the team did announce they might be able to release standing room tickets on Thursday.
Tech all time against Atlanta Regional opponents
UIC: 12-3 record, most recently beating them 6-3 in 2019 at home
The Citadel: 2-0 record, the only games coming in 2000 and 2013
Oklahoma: 1-6 record, the only win coming in their last meeting in 2017. All losses have come at neutral sites, most notably in 1994 to lose the College World Series.
