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Down 4-0 in the third inning, Syracuse needed some sort of a spark in game three of what had been a one-sided series against No. 17 Clemson. With two runners on for the Tigers, Lindsey Garcia looked to grow Clemson’s lead to seven. She drove the ball deep into center field for what would’ve been a sure home run. But just as the ball was about to sail over the back wall, Angel Jasso snagged it, giving the Orange a bright spot during a weekend series in which they never held a lead.

Ultimately, though, Syracuse (16-17, 4-11 Atlantic Coast Conference) lost in blowout fashion in both games of its doubleheader Sunday against No. 17 Clemson (27-11, 11-4 ACC), falling 10-1 in six innings and then 7-1 in the series finale. It marked the second time this season the Orange were swept by an ACC opponent.

In game one Sunday, just as it had in the first game of the series, SU fell behind early due to defensive mistakes. Britney Lewinski stepped into the circle for Syracuse but had a brief outing. She walked two batters and hit two more with wild pitches.

SU head coach Shannon Doepking was then forced to sub in Jessie DiPasquale. But DiPasquale also struggled against Clemson’s high-octane lineup. With the bases loaded for the Tigers, Alia Logoleo walked, which sent McKenzie Clark home to put Clemson up two. Garcia added onto the lead with a single that allowed Julia Knowler and Valerie Cagle to slide into home to make it a 4-0 advantage early for the Tigers.

SU was silent in the bottom of the first and Clemson continued to grow its lead in the second inning. Back-to-back walks and a single by Alex Brown once again filled the bases for the Tigers and Clark laced a base hit to center field that made it 5-0. The Orange responded with an RBI single by Rebecca Flores to cut the deficit to four — SU’s only run of the contest.

“I think we battled hard,” Jasso said postgame. “It just shows that we can do anything as long as we keep our heads up and keep fighting.”

After a rocky start, the Orange continued to fall behind in the third. Knowler was forced into a ground out on the first at-bat of the frame but then Logoleo walked on a full count. Garcia homered to right center field to grow Clemson’s lead to 7-1.

With the Orange back on offense, Madelyn Lopez singled to start off the bottom of the third inning, but Clemson starting pitcher Millie Thompson responded with back-to-back strikeouts. Madison Knight was walked to get a pair on base for SU, but a Laila Morales-Alves grounder to first made for an easy third out for the Tigers.

After a one-hit fifth inning between both sides, Clemson continued to pour it on in the sixth. A fielding error in left field by the Orange gave the Tigers base runners on second and third. Clark capitalized and slammed her team-high ninth home run of the season over the left-field wall, growing Clemson’s lead to 10-1. After the Orange were held to just one hit to close the bottom of the inning, the Tigers sealed a run-rule victory.

In game two, Clemson once again got off to a strong start. With a runner on first, Knowler launched a home run to right-center field to push the Tigers to an early 2-0 lead. The Orange couldn’t muster a single hit against Brooke McCubbin in the bottom of the frame.

The Tigers began the second inning with runners on first and second after back-to-back errors and a walk. Arielle Oda smacked a single to left that scored Aby Vieira. Maddie Moore followed up with a base hit of her own that also brought Oda home. With the help of Syracuse’s pair of early errors, Clemson stretched its lead to 4-0.

In the fourth, SU finally got on the board. To lead off the inning, Knight laced the ball deep into right field. Kylee Johnson jumped at the wall to make the grab, just as Jasso had done moments earlier. Yet, the ball glanced off the side of her glove and bounced over the wall for Knight’s first home run of 2024.

“It’s been a really slow year for me offensively,” Knight said. “So knowing that I can hit the ball hard against teams like (Clemson) puts a lot of confidence back in me.”

In the sixth inning, the Tigers got back to what they had been doing all series: padding their lead. Garcia singled to lead off, and Vieira tacked on another base hit. Following a fielding error by the Orange, Julia Bomhardt beat Morales-Alves’ tag at home plate to make it 5-1 Clemson, the first of a three-run sixth inning for the Tigers.

While the Orange recorded just one fewer hit than the Tigers in the series, they still were outscored by a lopsided tally of 30-4.

“This weekend we lacked confidence knowing that we were playing a ranked team,” Knight said. “It’s a tough road ahead of us, but if we can get better at staying confident I think we will be a lot better.”

Published on April 7, 2024 at 5:52 pm

Contact Matthew: mgray06@syr.edu