Duke baseball weekend recap

Duke dropped a baseball series opener for the first time this season, and then blew a six-run lead to lose the first two games of a series at N.C. State.

The Blue Devils rallied for a blowout to avoid the sweep.

The Blue Devils (17-7, 4-5 ACC) lost Friday’s series opener 4-3 at N.C. State (15-7, 5-4), getting outhit and issuing 10 walks. Duke’s lead was 8-2 entering the eighth inning before giving up the final seven runs on Saturday. Duke had five home runs on Sunday to win 13-2 in seven innings (shortened because of the 10-run rule).

Duke entered the weekend .500 in the ACC, having won two of three games at Wake Forest and losing two of three to Clemson last weekend.

Here is a recap of each game this weekend:

On Sunday, it was a 1-1 game in the fourth inning before Alex Stone launched a solo homer, and that started the explosion from Duke’s offense.

Wallace Clark doubled in a run later in the fourth, and Zac Morris made it a 5-1 lead with a two-run homer.

After N.C. State got a homer in the bottom of the fourth, Duke scored the game’s last eight runs — on Devin Obee’s solo homer, Logan Bravo’s RBI double, and then a couple of more homers by Stone and Morris. Stone’s was a two-run blast, while Morris’ was a grand slam.

This was a bounce-back game for Duke’s pitching staff, which got five innings from Andrew Healy (2-1). He gave up two runs on two hits and a walk, striking out six.

Fran Oschell III didn’t surrender a run in 1 2/3 innings, though he gave up two hits and two walks. Gabriel Nard recorded the game’s final out.

On Saturday, N.C. State’s rally started with Garrett Pennington hitting a solo homer in the eighth that made it 8-3.

And then in the ninth, the first two batters reached via walk and HBP. Charlie Beilenson, who also pitched the eighth, got a strikeout. And then a throwing error allowed one run to score, and Pennington followed with another homer, this one of the three-run variety.

Beilenson got a groundout for the second out, and then gave up a single. Eli Serrano III hit a walk-off homer that dealt Duke its fourth straight ACC loss.

Four of the seven runs Beilenson gave up were earned. Ryan Higgins started the game for Duke and pitched four shutout innings. Jackson Emus gave up two runs in the middle of the game, and James Tallon pitched two scoreless innings.

Duke had a strong offensive game, overshadowed by the ending. AJ Gracia was 2-for-3 with three RBI, including a two-run homer; Zac Morris and Logan Bravo drove in two runs apiece; Wallace Clark also homered.

On Friday, Jonathan Santucci gave up three runs despite not allowing a hit in his 5 1/3 innings, and N.C. State broke a tied game in the seventh inning to win the series opener.

Duke’s ace surrendered seven walks and threw a wild pitch. He walked the first three batters of the bottom of the fifth inning, and then N.C. State got a couple of RBI groundouts to take a 2-1 lead.

Luke Bravo led off the sixth with a homer to tie the game at 2-2. Santucci issued a one-out walk in the bottom of the inning and was pulled, and Owen Proksch surrendered a single and two walks to put the Wolfpack back in front.

Again, Duke tied the game in the next inning. Devin Obee led off the seventh with a triple and scored on Wallace Clark’s sacrifice fly.

Gabriel Nard (0-2), who entered for Proksch in the sixth, gave up a one-out double and single in consecutive batters for N.C. State to take back the lead.

Duke didn’t have another baserunner until two outs in the ninth, when Obee walked and reached second on a wild pitch. Clark struck out to end the game.