The Cavalier Daily
Serving the University Community Since 1890

Virginia baseball tops rival North Carolina

No. 8 Cavaliers take two of three from No. 2 Tar Heels in final regular season series

In the final action of the regular season, the No. 7 Virginia baseball team saved its best for last. The Cavaliers relied on strong offense to take two of three games from No. 2 North Carolina on the road in Chapel Hill.

Both teams came out strong on Thursday night, as the teams each scored two runs in the second inning. The Tar Heels (47-8, 21-7 ACC) struck again in the fourth, picking up two more runs off of starter Brandon Waddell to go up 4-2, but that would be all that Waddell would allow. The freshman settled down to throw seven innings, and the Cavalier bats came alive to support him. Virginia (45-9, 22-8 ACC) tied the game at 4-4 in the fourth inning, and pulled ahead 6-4 on two RBI singles in the fifth. Seven different Cavaliers had an RBI in the game, and Virginia continued to tack on runs as they cruised to a 10-4 win in the weekend opener.

Redshirt senior Scott Silverstein took the hill for the Cavaliers on Friday and performed admirably, giving up two runs in six innings. Sophomore outfielder Mike Papi picked up an RBI double in the third inning to give Virginia a 1-0 lead, and later added his sixth home run of the year in the fifth inning as the Cavaliers took a 4-2 lead. Leading 5-2 in the eighth inning, Cavalier junior closer Kyle Crockett found trouble, giving up four runs to give UNC a 6-5 lead. Josh Sborz relieved him, but the freshman was equally ineffective, giving up two more runs. Virginia went down 1-2-3 in the ninth as the Tar Heels won 8-5. The win gave UNC the ACC Coastal Division regular season title.

In Sunday’s rubber match, scoring was at a premium early on. Virginia picked up a run in the first inning and UNC responded in the fourth to tie the game, but that was all either team could muster until the eighth inning. Both freshman Joe McCarthy and sophomore Brandon Downes hit RBI doubles to plate three runs and give the Cavaliers a 4-1 lead. The advantage was short-lived, as the Tar Heels picked up two runs in the bottom of the inning to bring the game to 4-3, and scored in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extra innings. Neither team scored in the tenth, but Virginia picked up four runs in the top of the eleventh inning to go up 8-4. UNC refused to go quietly in the bottom of the eleventh, picking up two runs with one out. With runners on first and third, freshman Skye Bolt hit a deep fly ball to left field, and Papi made a dramatic catch. Freshman Landon Lassiter was able to score from third, but freshman Michael Massardo was caught in a double play to end the game at 8-7.

Virginia now prepares for the ACC tournament, which starts Wednesday. The Cavaliers will be the No. 3 seed in the tournament behind UNC and Florida State, who won the Atlantic Division.

Comments

Latest Podcast

The University’s Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment and Undergraduate Admission, Greg Roberts, provides listeners with an insight into how the University conducts admissions and the legal subtleties regarding the possible end to the consideration of legacy status.



https://open.spotify.com/episode/02ZWcF1RlqBj7CXLfA49xt