Nearly a year ago, then-No. 5 Louisville swept a three-games series from Virginia baseball in Charlottesville. After his then-No. 16 Cavaliers fell 4-0 in the finale, coach Brian O’Connor convened a team meeting. His message was direct — either his guys would play with energy and an identity, or they wouldn’t go anywhere, especially Omaha. The rest of Virginia’s 2015 season is memorable history.
“Our weekend against Louisville was a big turnaround time for us,” O’Connor said. “Not from the standpoint of we played well or won a ballgame, which we didn’t do either one of those, but it took that weekend for us to come together and say, ‘Alright this is what we’re going to stand for moving forward.’”
Now, as those ring-bearing Cavaliers prepare for another difficult three-game series against the Cardinals (16-4, 4-2 ACC), this one scheduled to take place in the Bluegrass State, their anxious minds revert back to that pivotal moment in April. O’Connor’s message reminds them of what it’ll take to compete this time around.
“Going into Louisville this week, everybody knows what happened [during that series],” sophomore first baseman Pavin Smith said. “So we’re going to kind of remember that meeting, take those points, and have as much energy as possible.”
No. 16 Virginia (16-6, 4-2) is already in a good place. Tuesday afternoon at Davenport Field, the Cavaliers pounded out seventeen hits en route to a 15-6 win over James Madison. The usual suspects in the middle of Virginia’s batting order — Smith and junior catcher Matt Thaiss — combined to tally more runs (4) than RBIs (3), an anomaly for those sluggers.
Smith and Thaiss reached first base either on a single, walk or error in eight of eleven total plate appearances. At the bottom of the lineup, freshman third baseman Andy Weber, freshman right fielder Cameron Simmons and sophomore utility man Justin Novak kept driving them home. All three recorded multi-hit, multi-RBI games.
“I’ve got a lot of confidence in our lineup,” O’Connor said. “You have the top five guys in the lineup who’ve been very productive for us a couple of years now, and the rookies toward the bottom. … Our guys go up there and battle, and our numbers are quite impressive. “
The Cavaliers are hitting .326 as a group in 2016, the 11th highest clip in Division-I baseball. Smith, Thaiss, sophomore pitcher/centerfielder Adam Haseley and sophomore second baseman Ernie Clement maintain .345-plus averages. Virginia also ranks sixth in hits and 14th in runs scored.
Numbers do tell a story, but if there were a matchup to humble Cavalier hitting statistics, it would be the one this weekend.
Louisville’s starting rotation flaunts two of the nation’s best arms. A first-round MLB draft pick and All-ACC First Team member in 2015, senior righty Kyle Funkhouser holds a 2-1 record over five starts this season. His 4.40 ERA and 19 walks may be higher than expected, but Virginia won’t take Funkhouser or his heater lightly.
“I can’t say I like facing 95,” Smith said. “I mean that’s pretty tough to hit, but every once in awhile, it's fun to try to compete against someone throwing really hard. You try and knock him out early.“
Then there’s sophomore lefty Brendan McKay, who earned Baseball America’s 2015 Freshman of the Year and All-America awards, among other top honors, for his 9-3 record, 1.77 ERA and 117 strikeouts over an outstanding freshman campaign. The Darlington, Pa. native sports a 4-1 record, 1.09 ERA and 11.45 K/9 average this season.
“After Funkhouser, McKay even has a better ERA than him,” Smith said. “So it’s just going into the weekend excited to face some really quality arms.”
Media members and college coaches didn’t select Louisville as their favorite to win the 2016 NCAA Championship based solely on its two aces. No, the Cardinals can hit the ball too. Their .319 team batting average ranks them just a few spots behind the Cavaliers.
Seven Louisville batters boast clips above .325, including the No. 5 overall player on MLB.com’s Prospect Watch List junior leftfielder Corey Ray. They’ll pose major threats to Cavalier pitchers this weekend.
“What’s important too is we’ve got to pitch,” O’Connor said. “We have a pretty good guy going on Friday as well. It’s not necessarily a matchup of our offense against their pitching. Our pitching has got to hold serve as well to give us a chance to win.”
Junior right-hander Connor Jones will get the ball for Virginia in the series opener Friday. Unbeaten this year with a 1.56 ERA, the former Great Bridge High School Wildcat embraces his opportunity to set the tone for the entire weekend. Jones and his teammates have long-awaited this rematch with the Cardinals.
“It’s definitely going to be fun,” Smith said. “Before the season, you mark Louisville. You mark Miami and North Carolina. Those are the most fun series, because they really bring out the competition and the best of both teams.”
The first pitch Friday is scheduled for 6 p.m in Louisville, Ky.
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