Cuvet's two home runs, 6 RBI leads Miami Hurricanes to opening win at ACC Tournament over Louisville, 8-5
CHARLOTTE — The Miami Hurricanes baseball team is known for its rich history.
Tuesday afternoon, Daniel Cuvet became a part of it.
Cuvet clobbered two home runs, matching the Hurricanes’ freshman single-season record, to propel 11th-seeded Miami to an 8-5 win over seventh-seeded Louisville at Truist Field.
“We just did a great job offensively,” coach J.D. Arteaga said. “(Rafe Schlesinger) made a pitch when he needed it, made defensive plays behind him. A big win. … Our lineup is starting to swing the bat better.”
A big part of that is the third baseman Cuvet. He belted a pair of three-run homers in both the first and seventh innings, which marked his 22nd and 23rd blasts of the year. His second shot of the day not only proved to be the difference for the Hurricanes (26-29), but also tied Cuvet with UM Sports Hall of Famer Pat Burrell for the freshman single-season record.
“To tie a guy like that … it’s an honor,” Cuvet said. “We’re focusing on winning the next game, keeping it going.”
“A big offensive day for us,” Cuvet added. “That’s what we need to keep doing to win games.”
He also said that he’s seeing the ball well and that the first homer was a breaking ball “he left over the plate” while on the second he knew the team would attack him with fastballs.
On the mound, left-handers Schlesinger (5-5) and Myles Caba (4) combined to keep the Cardinals (32-24) in check, holding off a late Louisville rally.
“Miami, they earned it, that was a well-played game,” Louisville coach Dan McDonnell said. “We had a chance,rallied there in the ninth but came up short.”
Schlesinger scattered three runs on six hits across 5 2/3 innings. The junior struck out five batters and didn’t issue a walk in the victory.
Schlesinger says he was mixing it up with his pitches and “going up, down in the zone.”
Meanwhile, Caba went the rest of the way, punching out five batters over the final 3 1/3 frames.
Up next, Miami meets second-seeded Clemson for a spot in the ACC Baseball Championship semifinals. First pitch is slated for 11 a.m. Thursday.
Gage Ziehl will start on Thursday.
“I think we’re in a good spot now with our best Friday night starter (Ziehl) going on Thursday and a fresh bullpen,” Arteaga said.
