The Terps will look to sweep the series on Sunday.
Maryland baseball defeated Boston College twice on Saturday, without surrendering the lead over 16 total innings of baseball.
Omar Melendez threw a seven-inning complete game as the Terps dominated the Eagles in game one, 8-1.
In the second contest, Maryland staved off a late Boston College push and held on to win, 5-3.
The two wins on Saturday made the Terps the series’ victors. They will look for the sweep on Sunday.
Melendez throws a complete game, as Maryland clobbers Boston College 8-1 in game one.
The first contest was a seven-inning affair, with the Terps taking control early and not looking back.
Maryland didn’t waste any time, quickly jumping out to a big lead and putting a six spot on the board in the first inning. Boston College’s starter, John West, allowed six runs in the first. However, only one of those runs were earned.
The first came when West walked Kevin Keister with the bases loaded. Then, Michael Iannazzo hit a ball to shortstop that was bobbled by Sam McNulty, resulting in a Sam Hojnar score. Two more runs came in when West hit Devin Russell and walked Elijah Lambros. Eddie Hacopian capped off the six-run inning with a two-run double.
The Terps tacked on a seventh run in the third inning as Keister hit a solo home run.
Omar Melendez started the first game for Maryland and took the mound with a comfortable lead. His day began with three straight scoreless innings. A single from the first batter he faced was the only hit he allowed in those frames.
Boston College finally potted a run on Melendez in the fourth inning. The first two runners got on base with a hit-by-pitch and a single. Then Vince Cimini hit an RBI single to drive in Kyle Wolff.
But the Terps snatched that run back when Russell brought in Keister with a sacrifice fly.
Melendez shut down the Eagles for three more scoreless innings to close out the seven-inning affair. He gave up one earned run, four hits, two walks and struck out four in a dominant outing.
While the match was only seven innings, it was Maryland’s first complete game since 2022, when Ryan Ramsey threw a perfect game against Northwestern. It’s also not the first time a Terp has thrown a seven-inning complete game, as David Carroll did it on March 3, 2012 against Manhattan. This was undoubtedly Melendez’s best appearance in a Maryland uniform.
Maryland shuts the door on Boston College in game two, winning 5-3.
In game two, Maryland’s pitching persevered through a number of jams, stranding 12 Eagle runners.
After a slew of pick-off attempts on both sides, Maryland broke the ice and put up a four spot in the third inning. Chris Hacopian hit a two-run single, Eddie Hacopian stole third and took home on a throwing error and Jacob Orr hit an RBI single.
Logan Koester took the mound for Maryland in game two and contributed to the pick-off party in the first two innings. But just like the Terps, Boston College started its scoring in the third. The runs came courtesy of Cameron Leary’s RBI groundout and Kyle Wolff’s RBI single.
Koester worked himself out of two jams in the fourth and fifth innings. Jacob Orr made an incredible catch falling over the bullpen wall, ending the fifth and Koester’s day on the mound. The right-hander gave up two earned runs on six hits, two walks and struck out three.
Kenny Lippman came in relief of Koester in the sixth and immediately worked out of a jam. After walking his first two batters, he escaped the inning by getting the next three hitters, the latter of which struck out looking.
Maryland added some insurance in the seventh inning, as Chris Hacopian hit an RBI single to drive in his brother Eddie.
Lippman worked a quick 1-2-3 inning in the seventh inning before allowing his first two hitters to get on base in the eighth. But then he struck out the next three to end his day. The right-hander gave up one hit in three inning, walked three and struck out five.
Logan Berrier, meanwhile, faced some trouble in the ninth inning. He walked Nick Wang with the bases loaded to bring in a run, but subsequently worked two straight strikeouts to complete the save for Maryland.
Three things to know
1. Melendez Mania. Melendez threw a seven-inning complete game in game one and only allowed one earned run. He allowed just four hits and two walks.
2. Clutch hitting. In game one, the Terps were 5-for-15 with runners on base, 3-for-6 with runners in scoring position and 4-for-10 with two outs. In game two, the Terps were again 5-for-15 with runners on, 4-for-7 with runners in scoring position and 3-for-12 with two outs.
3. Doubleheader sweep. Maryland completed the sweep of the doubleheader over Boston College. Sunday’s game will determine if it can complete the series sweep.