Virginia baseball wrapped up its four-game homestand Tuesday against Virginia Military Institute. The Cavaliers (3-1, 0-0 ACC) would fall behind the Keydets (0-1, 0-0 Big South) at the beginning but would steadily regain momentum throughout the game and overpower them in the end.
The Keydets were quick to get on the board in the second inning after a quiet first — racking up a 3-0 lead with a pair of unearned runs and a single. By the end of the inning, however, Virginia would take away VMI’s only lead of the day.
Three Cavaliers contributed runs during the second inning. Senior outfielder Marc Lebreux recorded an RBI single, while junior infielder Zack Gelof and senior first-baseman Alex Tappen recorded one and two RBI doubles, respectively. These runs would bring Virginia up 4-3.
At the top of the third, sophomore left-hander Nate Savino would pitch a scoreless frame. When the Cavaliers came up to bat, their pace from the previous inning carried over. First, senior outfielder Brendan Rivoli ended up running in to score after a wild pitch was thrown to graduate catcher Logan Michaels. Then, Michaels would capitalize off a Keydet miscommunication, steal a base and extend Virginia’s lead to three.
The Cavaliers would move through two different pitchers in the top of the fourth and fifth innings. During the bottom of the fifth when Virginia was at bat, junior infielder Nic Kent would hit an RBI double and push Michaels in to score — leaving the Cavaliers up 7-3.
The sixth inning would be the most productive for Virginia. After junior right-hander Zach Messinger quickly ran through the Keydet lineup, the Cavaliers wasted no time loading the bases. Michaels, Rivoli and Tappen were all on base when sophomore outfielder Chris Newell — last year’s National Co-Freshman of the Year — hit a home run to centerfield. Virginia was now up 12-3.
Gelof and Newell would both add insurance runs in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively. VMI would score two runs in the ninth inning in a measly attempt to recover. These efforts would prove unsuccessful, and Virginia would finish up 14-5.
Next up for the Cavaliers is a three-game road series against North Carolina starting Feb. 25. First pitch will be at 4 p.m.
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