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Duke baseball player MJ Metz had himself a day on Friday as the Blue Devils took on the UNC Wilmington Seahawks in the college baseball regionals.
Metz hit three home runs on Friday as Duke defeated UNCW, 12-3, and he did so with a torn ACL.
Duke Blue Devils infielder MJ Metz (29) is congratulated after hitting a home run during a college baseball game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Boston College Eagles on April 14, 2023, at the Eddie Pellagrini Diamond in Brighton, MA. (Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Metz, who was the designated hitter on Friday, suffered the injury during last week’s Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. Metz and Duke coach Chris Pollard still had not made a decision on his place in the lineup as of Thursday night, but Pollard said that Metz had “earned the right to make this decision” after a great round of batting practice on Thursday, according to The Fayetteville Observer.
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“I thought that I could help the team, and that’s all I was trying to do,” Metz said, per The Observer. “I told (Pollard) I wanted to give it a shot and that I’d let him know if anything changed. Just grateful for the way it all turned out.”
A baseball sits on the field as the Miami Hurricanes take on the Duke Blue Devils during the ACC Baseball Championship at Durham Bulls Athletic Park on May 26, 2023, in Durham, North Carolina. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
Metz hit a solo shot in the bottom of the fourth inning, a two-run home run in the fifth inning and another two-run shot in the seventh.
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“Definitely a surprise to me,” said Metz. “I didn’t come out here trying to do any of that. Just really grateful to be back on the field again; grateful to be given a shot, especially given what happened.”
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Metz is the first Duke baseball player to hit three home runs in a single game since RJ Schreck accomplished the feat in the Knoxville Regional during the 2021 NCAA Tournament.
Duke Blue Devils infielder MJ Metz (29) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during a college baseball game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Boston College Eagles on April 14, 2023, at the Eddie Pellagrini Diamond in Brighton, MA. (Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Blue Devils are playing in the Conway Regional where Coastal Carolina is the one-seed and hosting the tournament.
Duke will play Rider Saturday night after the Broncos took down Coastal Carolina in 10 innings on Friday.
