Virginia Tech’s Chris Stanton went 3-for-3, including a bases loaded triple, helping Virginia Tech to an 8-5 win over ETSU in non-conference baseball action at the Kingsport Classic Tuesday night.It was the Buccaneers (16-23) that got on the board first in this one, scoring a run in the second to take the early lead. Caleb Moore got the first of two doubles on the night when his fly to right was lost in the lights by the Tech right fielder. Kirk Keithley sacrificed Moore to third from where he scored on a ground out by Mike Giroud.

Virginia Tech (22-17) could not get anything going until the fourth off of Buccaneer starter Jackson Simerly. The Hokies managed to load the bases on a pair of singles and a walk before Stanton laced a two-out triple to the wall in left center that cleared the bases. Simerly then hit Brad Bauder before Tech got consecutive RBI singles from Marc Tugwell, Jon West and Wyatt Toregas to take a 6-1 lead.

ETSU took advantage of a pair of Tech errors to score an unearned run in the fifth, but the Hokies answered with a Spencer Harris home run in the bottom of the inning.

Two more runs came across for the Bucs in the sixth, cutting Tech’s lead to 7-4. Jeremy Terry and Brandon Cross started the inning with singles. Moore then doubled home Terry and Keithley plated Cross with a ground out. The Bucs then cut the lead to 7-5 when Terry led off the eighth with a double and scored on a single from Cross. The Bucs then loaded the bases with no outs, but Giroud popped out and Bryan Crouse pinch-hit into an inning ending double play to end the threat.

Bauder doubled home a run for the Hokies in the bottom of the eighth for the final run of the game.

Moore finished the night going 3-for-4 with two doubles and a run and RBI to lead ETSU.

Terry and Cross each had a pair of hits for the Bucs. Stanton was the only Tech player with more than one hit with his 3-for-3 night.

Simerly took the loss for ETSU, going four innings and giving up seven hits and six runs. Josh Kite pitched well in relief, tossing a pair of hitless innings, striking out one.

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