Sometimes the little things can get a late game rally started. Other times, a 335-foot homer to right field can do the job. Senior first baseman Joe Koshansky provided just that in the eighth inning of yesterday's Virginia baseball matchup with George Mason (13-6, 3-0 CAA) in Fairfax, Va.
Virginia (19-5, 4-2 ACC), who recently moved to No. 25 in the national polls, fell to a 5-2 deficit during a bizarre third inning. Freshman starting pitcher Alex Smith tried to throw out the runner on first base three different times, and on both his first and second attempts, he hit the first base umpire, once allowing a runner on third to score. One ball hit the umpire in the shoulder and the other bounced directly off his chest, but the umpire remained in the game, showing no signs of injury.
"I have never seen that, I never have," Virginia head coach Brian O'Connor said.
In the seventh inning, the Cavaliers put together two more runs and entered the eighth down just 5-4. Koshansky led the inning off with the homer, his tenth of the year, and three batters later, senior second baseman Kyle Werman hit a blooper single to center field to bring in sophomore leftfielder Matt Dunn.
"My initial plan was to get the bunt down," Werman said. "When you get two strikes you just try to put the ball in play, and it finally found a hole."
Werman popped the bunt up twice before hitting the single that scored Dunn. Freshman leftfielder Tim Henry quickly followed with a single to center scoring pinch runner Tom Hagan, and a passed ball at the plate capped off a four-run eighth inning for the Cavaliers.
Virginia played solid defense for the most part yesterday, completing three double plays, including one to finish the game in the ninth inning. Though Smith had a tough outing in the first two innings, junior lefthander Scott Morgenthaler pitched well, registering 4.2 scoreless innings. After coming in to relieve Smith, his escape from a jam in the third was particularly impressive.
"Scott was the story of the game," O'Connor said. "You're on the road, they jump up 5-2 and Scott comes in there and holds them down for four or five innings."
It took Morgenthaler just one pitch to get out of the jam. After a ground ball to short, the second base umpire called interference on the Mason base runner during a double play attempt by junior shortstop Mark Reynolds. The call ended the inning for the Cavaliers.
Sophomore George Mason pitcher Eric Gibbons pitched well early, but in the later part of his seven inning outing he faltered, allowing the beginning of the eighth inning rally. Mason's junior first baseman Chris Looze also had a home run in the first inning -- a two run shot to left that hugged the foul line but just cleared the fence at 320 feet.
Late in the game a number of regular starting pitchers came in as relievers for the Cavaliers, including senior Chris Gale and freshman lefty Casey Lambert, allowing them to get in some work before this weekend's three-game road series against North Carolina State. Both pitchers closed out the eighth and ninth, respectively, with scoreless innings.
The Cavaliers' win was particularly impressive as it was the first loss of the year at home for the Patriots, who were 6-0 at home before the loss. With the win, the Cavaliers moved to 19-5 on the season and showed that they have enough offensive firepower to rally late in a game.
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