Virginia baseball handed No. 7 Louisville its first home loss of the season with a 6-3 victory Friday night. Senior workhorse Connor Jones tossed 112 pitches over seven strong innings, allowing three runs — two earned — on five hits.
The Chesapeake, Va. native is making an early case for ACC Pitcher of the Year, as Jones improved his record to 5-0 in 2016.
The Cardinals scratched across the game’s first run in the bottom of the second inning. After consecutive walks and Louisville’s effective sacrifice bunt, Jones fell behind 3-0 to sophomore shortstop Devin Hairston, whose bloop single to right plated a run. The No. 9 Cavaliers escaped further damage, though, thanks to an inning-ending 5-4-3 double play.
Trailing 1-0, Virginia responded in the top of the third. His teammates taking their one-out leads off first and second base, junior catcher Matt Thaiss awaited a 3-0 delivery. Third base coach Kevin McMullan gave the preseason All-American the green light, and Thaiss hammered a three-run home run over the wall in right center. The Cavaliers jumped ahead, 3-1.
A two-bagger off the bat of Louisville junior left fielder Corey Ray made it a one-run ballgame in the fifth, but Virginia answered back in a big way two innings later. This time, with men on the corners and two outs, sophomore first baseman Pavin Smith attacked an inside, belt-high pitch. His three-run homer to right provided the insurance Jones would need.
The Cardinals scored their third run in the bottom of the seventh. Junior right fielder Logan Taylor reached on a bunt single, stole second base and advanced to third on a Thaiss throwing error. Ray, who produced against Cavalier pitching all weekend, then poked an RBI grounder to second base.
The back of the Virginia bullpen held onto this 6-3 lead, after Jones’ one-out exit in the top of the eighth. Senior reliever Kevin Doherty retired each of the two batters he faced in that frame, and junior closer Alec Bettinger recorded his seventh save in the ninth. The Cavaliers had gotten the better of Louisville in game one, but games two and three both proved to be different stories.
The Cardinals knocked out Virginia freshman pitcher Daniel Lynch in the second inning Saturday. The lefty had surrendered five runs on four hits — including Ray and sophomore catcher Colby Fitch’s back-to-back solo home runs — one walk and a hit by pitch.
The Cavaliers saw their 2-0 lead, which they’d assumed on three hits, a wild pitch and an error in the first, vanish by the bottom of that inning.
Louisville’s offense took advantage of a vulnerable Virginia bullpen the rest of the way. Junior reliever Tyler Shambora, a transfer from St. Petersburg College, walked in the Cardinal’s sixth run on five pitches in the third. Louisville sophomore starting pitcher Brendan McKay, who had mowed down the Cavaliers since his shaky start, smacked a big fly off Shambora in the fourth to help his own cause and make it 7-2.
Sophomore reliever Bennett Sousa entered for Shambora in the fifth and continued his struggles. Slapping a one-out single through the left side, the speedy Ray stole second before Fitch’s triple plated Louisville’s eighth unanswered run. At the top of the Cardinal lineup, the 1-2 punch of Ray and Fitch combined for five hits in nine trips, six RBIs, four runs and two walks Saturday.
Louisville went on to win 11-4 Saturday. McKay earned his fifth victory of the season to match Jones for tops in the ACC. The talented lefty struck out nine batters over eight innings, allowing three runs — just one earned — on eight hits and zero walks. By contrast, Cavalier arms walked nine batters, three times without an open base.
After that collapse Saturday, coach Brian O’Connor and his Virginia players regrouped ahead of the rubber match. A series win was still possible, and this was reason enough for those in the orange and blue to be confident. Even when they found themselves down 4-0 in the fourth Sunday, the Cavaliers believed in a comeback.
Unfortunately, Virginia totally unraveled in the fifth inning Sunday. Three different pitchers — sophomore starter Tommy Doyle, senior reliever David Rosenberger and sophomore reliever Jack Roberts — surrendered a total of 10 runs on nine hits and an error.
Louisville junior pitcher Drew Harrington dominated Cavalier batters over seven innings en route to a 15-0 shutout. Virginia had trouble squaring up Harrington’s pitches, tallying four hits, none for extra bases. While again, the Cardinal 1-2 punch of Ray and, on this day, freshman second baseman Devin Mann punished Cavalier pitching.
The duo combined for four hits, four runs and six RBIs in Louisville’s statement win over the Cavaliers.
Read More
Mel Josephson and women’s lacrosse prepare to take center stage
By Xander Tilock | 6 hours agoJosephson's ability to perform throughout a game's biggest moments is crucial for the Cavaliers.
Virginia schools can pay players through NIL, but the University should proceed with caution
By Emory Huffman | YesterdayGiven the unique academic and athletic opportunities Virginia is able to offer its athletes, it is not shocking that Virginia has been resistant to extravagant, NIL-induced changes.
Record-setting weekend for Virginia track and field at Penn Relays and Virginia High Performance
By Tanmayi Patil | 2 days agoThe Cavaliers took down records across two events over the weekend.
