Miami Hurricanes Baseball Season Ends After Late Collapse Against Troy As Omaha Drought Continues

Less than 12 hours after dropping a mistake-prone Game 2 of regionals to Florida, 22-10, the Miami Hurricanes baseball team was back at UF’s Condron Family Ballpark Sunday afternoon in an elimination game vs. Troy.

UM had defeated the Trojans in Game 1, 10-5.

The second meeting saw UM shoot ahead 6-2 – all six runs coming with two outs – heading to the bottom of the fifth. But Troy came back with seven unanswered runs. Final score: Troy 9, Miami 6.

End of season.

“These are always tough, man,” coach J.D. Arteaga said afterward. “The reality is that 63 teams start this tournament and (end) just like this. Especially tough for guys that move on to professional baseball, seniors.”

And a lot of questions heading into the offseason for UM to answer with a decade now separating the Canes from their last Omaha appearance.

Arteaga says this was “the best regular season we’ve had in the last three years, but obviously not the best postseason. The end of the day, we don’t get to Omaha, it doesn’t matter. We have to get to Omaha, that’s our goal. That’s not going to change.”

The recap of this one:

Jake Ogden began the top of the first with a single off Tommy Egan, who only lasted one out for Troy in the first meeting of the teams, but then Ogden was picked off of first by the catcher … the latest mistake by the team. The next two batters were retired … and in the bottom half a two-out hard hit RBI single to right field by Steven Meier plated Blake Cavill from second. It was 1-0 Troy heading to the second.

A leadoff homer in the bottom of the third by Josh Pyne made it 2-0 Troy, but in the top of the fourth one swing of the bat tied it up – Alex Sosa hit a two-out two-run home run to dead center. And the rally continued from there, with Gabriel Milano driving in two with a single to right.

“Ever since I was a little kid I wanted to be a Hurricane,” an emotional Sosa said. “Playing for J.D. has been awesome. He’s been awesome to play for, allowed me to be myself and do what I could do.

“It hurts (to lose). It’s not easy. it is what it is.”

AJ Ciscar took over on the mound for starter Lazaro Collera to start the fourth, and the Canes padded the lead with a two-out solo shot over the right field wall by Max Galvin in the top of the sixth, putting Miami ahead 5-2. A single by Derek Williams followed, chasing Eagan after 4.2 innings of work. Sosa then drove in Williams with a double to right, and it was 6-2 heading to the bottom of the fifth.

Miami seemed in control.

But it didn’t last long.

“We played hard, were in a pretty good spot there with Ciscar, just didn’t work out,” Arteaga said.

Troy loaded the bases with one out in its side of the fifth on a double, walk and hit by pitch, and then a double-play ball saw the throw from second to first too high and the run scored. With runners on first and third and two outs Sean Darnell flew out to left field, and the game went to the sixth with UM ahead, 6-3.

After Miami didn’t pad its lead, a solo homer to lead off the bottom half of the sixth from Jabe Boroff made it 6-4. Back-to-back-to-back singles followed to load the bases with no outs, chasing Ciscar with Jake Dorn coming into a tough situation. A shallow fly to center didn’t advance the runners, but a wild pitch did. Sun Belt Player of the Year Jimmy Janicki followed with a sac fly to left, and the game was tied at six. Troy stranded the go-ahead run at second when Steven Meier flied to left, and the game headed to the seventh inning.

Miami went down 1-2-3 in the top half, then Boroff hit his second homer of the game, a solo shot, with two outs, and Houston Markham followed with another home run. To recap, yes, the eighth and ninth hitters put the Trojans up, 8-6. That ended Dorn’s day and Frank Menendez took over on the mound, with a fly to left sending the game to the top of the eighth. Miami went 1-2-3 again, then Troy got an infield single and walk in the bottom half to bring up Janicki. Menendez was pulled with Cane closer Lyndon Glidewell coming on, and Janicki flew out to shallow left. But then Meier singled up the middle to plate an insurance run and Troy led, 9-6.

Miami was down to its final three outs.

Pinch hitter Brylan West struck out. Ogden got a bloop single to center, then Galvin popped out to shortstop for the second out of the inning. The game … and Miami’s season … ended with Williams grounding out to third.

Miami couldn’t figure out reliever Zach Crotchfelt, who worked 4.1 innings and allowed four hits and no runs.

Consistent pitching continued to be an issue for UM, a recurring theme of regionals for Miami. Collera went three innings, allowing six hits and two runs. Ciscar, who struggled against UF a day earlier and only lasted two outs, made his first relief appearance of the season taking over for Collera. He worked two innings and allowed five hits and four runs. Dorn allowed two solo homers in 1.2 innings, then Menendez only got one out, allowing a hit, walk and run. Glidewell worked one inning, allowing an inherited runner to score.

“(Pitching was) not good enough,” Arteaga said. “Pitching not getting ahead. Just not making quality pitching.”

The Canes had 11 hits, with Ogden three-for-five and Sosa and Alvarez adding a pair of hits apiece. Sosa and Galvin went long for Miami, but aside from that the team’s only other extra base hit was a double. Troy hit four homers in the game.

“We swung the bats well, just a combination of defense and pitching (were issues),” Arteaga said.

Now it’s on to next season for Miami.

“The reality is it’s a completely different roster next year,” Arteaga said.