After being rained out at home against Virginia Commonwealth Tuesday, the Virginia baseball team gets back into action this weekend with a three-game series against Wake Forest. The Cavaliers kick off the critical midseason ACC matchups today at 3 p.m. at U.Va. Baseball Field. The Cavs and Deacons also face off Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Cavaliers (12-12-1, 1-2-0 ACC) enter this weekend's competition after losing two of three games at the hands of N.C. State last weekend. However, Virginia has posted an impressive 9-4-1 mark on its home field and hopes for similar success as the Deacs roll into town.
"Being at home is a heck of a lot nicer than being on the road," said Virginia Coach Dennis Womack, "but Wake Forest is a very confident team. They always swing the bats well, and I think their pitching is going to be solid."
Wake Forest (18-8, 3-3 ACC) has indeed demonstrated their surging confidence as of late, taking two of a three-game series last weekend against then-No.1 Florida State. With the wins, Wake broke into the top 25 nationally and is now ranked No. 22 by Baseball America.
The Demon Deacons followed their strong performances against FSU with an even more impressive victory Tuesday, topping UNC-Greensboro 14-0 behind a no-hitter thrown by Wake pitcher Ben Clayton. But with today's game looming, the Deacs lost to Liberty yesterday, 7-5.
Scott Siemon, Eric Schmitt and Clayton are slated to start on the mound, in that order, for Wake Forest.
|
Brandon Creswell (1-5, 4.53 ERA) will take the mound Friday, Will Parker (4-0, 1.71 ERA) Saturday and Kevin Shrout (3-0, 4.26 ERA) Sunday.
Parker, a key component of the Virginia rotation this season, says his team needs to play at its peak level each time out, regardless of the opponent.
"I try not to think about how well Wake Forest is playing, as long as we play well," Parker said.
Parker also knows the upcoming weekend will be an important midseason test for the improving Cavaliers.
"We've been improving slowly throughout the season," he said. "We're playing a lot better overall, and we've lost some recent close ones we could have won."
Read More
No. 6 women’s lacrosse gets revenge on No. 14 North Carolina
By Matthew Ryeom | 2 hours agoThe Cavaliers' big third quarter propelled them to a key victory over the Tar Heels.
Virginia softball drops road rematch against Virginia Tech
By Emory Huffman | 12 hours agoAs Virginia moves through the final week of the regular season, it is certainly critical that its pitching staff maintains the same dominance they have shown throughout the season.
Haunted by 2023 defeat, Virginia gets Notre Dame rematch
By Michael Liebermann | 22 hours agoAgainst a bitter rival, Virginia has an opportunity to forge a victorious new chapter in lacrosse history.
