The bats were alive and well for the Miami Hurricanes baseball team (8-1) on Wednesday night, as they defeated the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (4-4) at Mark Light Field, 14-6.
The dominant showing was headlined by a five-run fourth inning for the ‘Canes. The action started with a score by leadoff hitter Dorian Gonzalez, Jr. Star sophomore Daniel Cuvet took a ball which resulted in a wild pitch, allowing Gonzalez to slide into home plate. Then, left fielder Max Galvin and shortstop Jake Ogden had an RBI double and single, respectively. The exclamation mark of the inning was a home run to right field by designated hitter Bobby Marsh, which brought him and Ogden in to score.
Marsh had an excellent outing to follow his performance on Sunday against Princeton, where he had a grand slam against the Tigers. He is hitting .296 on the season and had 15 RBIs coming into Wednesday’s affair.
Miami starting pitcher Reese Lumpkin gave up just two earned runs in six innings pitched, and had nine strikeouts. The graduate transfer from Winthrop picked up his first win as a Hurricanes starter during the 2025 campaign.
Other notable moments during the contest included a solo home run shot off the bat of Ogden in the eighth inning, as well as an RBI double by Marsh in the first inning which got the scoring going for Miami. The ‘Canes were out to a 3-0 lead also thanks to an ensuing RBI in the first by Tanner Smith. The Chandler, Arizona native and Oregon State transfer came into the matchup with the Eagles batting a .348 average and has started every game this year for the Hurricanes.
The Eagles’ rough performance was not helped by their shaky pitching. Starter Jordan Vera pitched for only 3 and ⅔ innings, allowing seven hits and four earned runs. This forced the FGCU bullpen to be utilized early, with reliever Evan Dempsey giving up four hits and two earned runs of his own.
The victory over the Eagles can prove to be an important momentum boost for Miami, as they look ahead to their upcoming weekend series. They are set to take on the Florida Gators in Gainesville, who are currently the eighth ranked team in the country.
The first game of the series will take place on Friday, February 28. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. from Condron Family Ballpark in Gainesville.