In a battle of Jeffersonian origins, the No. 19 Virginia baseball team hosted William and Mary on a beautiful first day of March. Fresh off two losses in three games against East Carolina, their only home weekend series defeat to a non-conference club over coach Brian O’Connor’s tenure, the Cavaliers scratched across nine runs in the first inning Tuesday.
“We wanted to jump out and be aggressive right off the bat…” sophomore center fielder Ernie Clement said. “You just [have] to hand it off to the next guy. You just [have] to keep battling in the at bat, try to extend the inning. Everybody kept doing their job and moving the inning along.”
After sophomore starting pitcher and designated hitter Adam Haseley flied out to left to lead off the frame, Virginia batters pounded out seven singles, two doubles and a triple. Clement, sophomore first baseman Pavin Smith, as well as junior catcher Matt Thaiss, collected two hits a piece in the lopsided inning.
Smith’s double to deep center plated the Cavalier’s ninth run, but a strong William and Mary relay also cut down Thaiss at home to record a long-evaded third out. It didn’t matter, though. An assertive Virginia team had left the Tribe down for the count early.
“I was really proud of our guys,” O’Connor said. “We had a really good approach right out of the gate against their starter. Certainly, there were a few balls that found holes. But for the most part, we squared up the ball pretty good and took advantage. It just kind of was contagious.”
With ample home insurance, Haseley returned to the hill. There, the “Reverend” — a nickname the then-freshman earned for his calm and dignified disposition under any circumstance — allowed two runs on two hits over five innings of work.
Haseley was very sharp, walking just one William and Mary hitter ahead of his sole mistake pitch to sophomore left fielder Ryan Hall in the third. That baseball ended up a souvenir beyond the wall in left center. Still, Virginia held a 10-2 advantage when Haseley trotted off the mound in the fifth.
“I thought Adam did a nice job in his second start, and certainly we had a lot of other guys out there in relief,” O’Connor said. “It was nice to see [sophomore] Jack Roberts come in and pitch well with runners on. We got a chance to get a look at a lot of different players in different spots.”
The Cavalier bullpen — apart from Roberts, who sat down both batters he faced — showed more signs of struggle in relief of Haseley. Maybe lacking focus with such a comfortable lead, juniors Holden Grounds and Tyler Shambora and sophomore Bennett Sousa combined to give up six runs, five earned. The Tribe trailed 14-8 after Sousa left the mound in the middle of the ninth.
“I thought Shambora did a nice job coming in and getting us out of that inning, but then not so good going back out there the next inning,” O’Connor said. “And, you know, same with Bennett Sousa. So we’ve just got to keep running those guys out there, getting them opportunities. ... And they need to do it.”
While the pen discouraged the Virginia faithful Tuesday, the offense put on another hitting clinic, totaling 16 runs on 17 hits, and sophomore infielder Justin Novak had a promising day at the plate. The American School in Japan alum collected two hits, two runs and three RBIs.
Novak totaled a mere seven hits and three RBIs in 74 at bats last season.
“I felt like I was ready last year,” Novak said. “But I don’t know how long it took to get just two hits last year. It was unbelievable. I was struggling. After all that, I definitely learned from it. I know that it’s a long season, and I’m just going out there and having fun.”
In the nine-spot of the order, Novak succeeded in working the count, putting the ball in play and turning over the lineup to Haseley and his fellow sophomore Clement in the two-hole. Clement tallied three hits, two runs and two RBIs in six trips, but the Rochester, N.Y. native was happier about his teammate’s success.
“He’s one of the hardest workers on the team, I’d say,” Clement said. “So to see him come out and have such a great game is just so rewarding for him and everybody else on the team to help contribute to a good win like that.”
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