Louisville’s baseball season ended with a 16-8 loss to Pitt in the ACC Tournament at Truist Field in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The 11th-seeded Cardinals shook off a slow start after giving up five runs in the first inning, but their pitching faltered as the 14th-seeded Panthers totalled 10 runs between the fourth and fifth innings.
Cardinals’ Offence Falters After Promising Start
Louisville’s best inning was a five-run second. Tague Davis collected his 97th RBI of the season, scoring Alex Alicea on a single for the 5-4 score. Griffin Crain later scored on a fielder’s choice to tie the game.
After that, the Cardinals were held scoreless over the next four innings, with Pitt retiring 10 straight batters between the third and sixth.
David Leslie struck out the side in the fifth inning and earned the win after totalling nine strikeouts over 6⅓ innings to help the Panthers’ victorious performance. Starter Antonio Doganiero allowed five runs (three earned) on six hits with one walk and three strikeouts in 1⅓ frames. Chase Kriebel recorded the final four outs for Pitt.
Pitching Struggles Cost Louisville
UofL threw six pitchers in the game, with starter Wyatt Danilowicz (4-3) taking the loss. He gave up seven earned runs on six hits with two walks and seven strikeouts in 3⅓ innings.
“We came up really short on the mound,” Louisville coach Dan McDonnell said to Inside Louisville Baseball after the game. “Most importantly, we didn’t throw enough strikes. We weren’t in the strike zone. I think we walked more guys, as a pitching staff, than our offense walked (this season). I’ve never been a part of a staff that I can recall where our pitching staff walked more than opposing pitchers walked that lineup that we have. That’s just something that just has to be addressed, because you cannot win in college baseball when you don’t throw the ball consistently in the strike zone.”
Davis Sets Records in Losing Effort
Davis had one hit in the first-round ACC Tournament game, added an RBI groundout in the seventh and closed out the campaign with single-season school records in RBIs (98) and home runs (34).
Cardinals Face Post-Season Doubt
The Cardinals are expected to miss the NCAA Tournament after reaching the College World Series in 2025 and beginning this season ranked No. 11 nationally. Louisville averaged 8.6 runs per game on offense, led by Davis’ historic season, but posted a collective 6.81 ERA across 57 contests.
- Louisville ends the season with a 30-27 record.
- The Panthers move on to play sixth-seeded Wake Forest in the second round of the ACC Tournament.
Zane Stahl will throw the ninth inning and relieve Aaron England, who gave up one earned run on three hits and fanned two over 2 1/2 innings of work.
Zion Rose keeps the game going with a two-out, 2 RBI hit but is left stranded after the Panthers get