The Virginia baseball team will pack its umbrellas and travel to Norfolk today to face in-state rival Old Dominion.
After inclement weather forced the cancellation of Sunday's game against Seton Hall, Virginia (7-4) will make its second road trip of the year to face the Monarchs (3-11) at Bud Metheny Complex.
"We went on the road and played well at both spots, at VCU and at Liberty," Virginia coach Dennis Womack said. "I feel like we will be well prepared."
Last week, Virginia went 1-2 against in-state opponents. The Cavaliers lost to William & Mary at home and VCU on the road but beat Liberty in Lynchburg. Womack knows his players will have to expect another tough game from an in-state rival.
"I think the players realize that you have to be ready to play against the in-state teams and you have to match their intensity," Womack said. "They are probably going to throw their best pitcher, so you just have to deal with that."
Although Old Dominion has an unimpressive record this season, the numbers are deceptive. Most of its games have come on the road against very tough competition such as Tennessee and South Carolina.
Last season, the Monarchs opened the season 2-9-1 and finished the year 33-24-1 for first place in the Colonial Athletic Association.
Expecting to face Old Dominion's best pitchers, the Cavaliers know runs will be at a premium. Fortunately, Virginia's offense has been its brightest spot, averaging over seven runs per game.
"We're hitting .315 as a team, so I'm pretty happy about that," Womack said. "We're doing some pretty good things on offense. We've started to get some production from the bottom of the order, so we're starting to solidify our lineup from bottom to top."
With the offense gelling nicely, Virginia now needs the defensive side to step up to the plate. Before freshman pitcher Joseph Koshansky's one-run complete game against Seton Hall, Virginia had allowed at least seven runs in each of its last five games.
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"We need to throw the ball a bit better at the end of games, in terms of pitching," Womack said. "We just need to execute a little better, but every team is going to say that."
Virginia's players, however, are confident that tomorrow's starting pitcher, junior Dan Street, will get the job done. Street won ACC Pitcher of the Week honors Feb. 19 for his scoreless seven-inning outing against Navy on Feb. 18. He is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA on the season.
"Dan Street is pitching, and I think that the whole team has confidence when Dan is on the mound," Virginia catcher Mark Rueffert said.
Consistency in the field was a problem at the beginning of the season, but the team now seems to have developed steadiness with a more regular starting lineup.
"We're playing a fairly consistent club now," Womack said. "I think they are starting to get momentum and starting to mesh out there."
With outfielder Shawn McCleary out because of a broken wrist, the Cavaliers will have stability in the outfield by playing the same three guys - David Stone, Doug Vroman and Chris Sweet.
Today, Virginia will be playing for something more important than a win and consistency. They'll be playing for state pride.
"Just the fact that ODU is in state is enough motivate us to play well," Reuffert said.
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