The 2025 NCAA baseball tournament has started out perfectly for the Miami Hurricanes, winning their first two games in the tournament to secure themselves in their regional’s final, putting them a win away from the super regionals.
This is a great shock since many thought the Hurricanes would not even make the tournament after a subpar regular season and a poor showing in the ACC tournament, where the Hurricanes were mercy-ruled in eight innings by No. 16 seed California, 12-2. Still, luck was on their side as they earned a No. 3 seed in the regional.
Miami’s first win came Friday with a 5-3 win over No. 2 seed Alabama. The ’Canes got their second win of the tournament Saturday night, defeating No. 4 seed Columbia, which had upset regional host Southern Miss the day before. The Ivy League champions proved to be no issue for the Hurricanes as they defeated the Lions by a wide margin of 14-1.
The game against Columbia was like an in-game batting practice for UM from the start. The Miami batters started the bottom of the first inning with five straight hits. A double play ended the rally, but not before the Hurricanes took an early 4-0 lead—three runs coming from hits and another from a wild pitch.
The second and third innings featured a Miami runner making it to third at some point in the frame, but neither would turn into runs. Columbia scored its first and only run of the game at the top of the fourth inning in the form of a solo home run from senior outfielder Anton Lazits, which brought the score to 4-1.
UM’s start to the bottom of the fourth seemed to be the start of a three and out as the first two batters failed to make it to first safely. Junior Jake Ogden got the offense started with a single and steal of second. Redshirt junior Max Galvin drove him Ogden in with a double, bringing the score to 5-1.
Next up to bat was slugger Daniel Cuvet, who Columbia wanted absolutely nothing to do with as they intentionally walked him. Instead, they chose to face senior Dorian Gonzalez Jr., who made the Lions regret that decision as he homered on the first pitch he saw to bring Miami to an even more dominating lead of 8-1.
The next Hurricane run came in the bottom of the sixth inning in the form of a solo shot from Galvin to increase their lead to 9-1. That turned out to be the only run of the sixth, but the ’Canes tallied four more in the seventh off of a grand slam from Gonzalez Jr. to bring up that commanding lead to 13-1.
The final run of the game for UM came in the eighth in the form of a double freshman effort with Fabio Perlata coming in to score off of a Michael Torres single, bringing the score to its final, 14-1.
The Hurricanes put on a clinic in the hitting department tallying 14 runs, 16 hits and three home runs, but the offense wasn’t the only story.
Miami starting pitcher Griffin Hugus was the only Hurricane to take the mound during the entire game. In an incredible nine innings of work, Hugus threw 123 pitches and struck out nine batters while allowing up eight hits, one walk and only one run. Thanks to Hugus’ dominating and probably exhausting performance, Miami did not have to use a single reliever, an advantage in tournament play.
The Hurricanes will play in the regional final today at 7 p.m. against the winner of the Southern Miss—Columbia elimination game.