After narrowly securing a 9-8 victory over VCU Tuesday, Virginia’s goal Wednesday was to win in less dramatic fashion. The pitching staff delivered, holding Navy to one run en route to a 5-1 win. Led by junior pitcher Chris Arroyo, the two-way player making his second start of the season, the Cavaliers (26-16, 11-10 ACC) had no trouble handling the Midshipmen (23-23, 14-11) at home.
Arroyo’s second start came in a similar situation as his first — a spot start to protect the weekend arms. The results were better — 4.2 innings of two-hit, one-run ball, another demonstration of his ability to deliver quality outings when needed for Virginia.
“I feel like I got after batters,” Arroyo said. “I’m pretty quick with the ball, I like to just go right at it. I think it gives me less time to think.”
While Arroyo kept Navy’s offense in check, the first Cavalier run came in the second inning thanks to graduate catcher Jacob Ference, who drove an opposite-field line drive off of the scoreboard in right-center field for a solo home run. Two innings later, Virginia put up three runs thanks to a more small-ball approach, benefitting from a walk, a hit by pitch, a sacrifice fly and a few singles.
Arroyo cruised through his first four innings but ran into trouble in the fifth frame as he allowed a walk and a subsequent RBI double for Navy’s first run. Graduate pitcher Wes Arrington entered with two outs and plunked a Midshipman before recording the final out to stop the bleeding.
After the fifth inning, the game was largely a pitching duel. The only offense came when the Cavaliers tallied one more run in the seventh on sophomore infielder Henry Ford’s second hit of the game, an RBI single. Ford’s two-for-four day improved his batting average to .368, the second-best mark on the team. The leader, somewhat unexpectedly, is freshman infielder Chone James — who continued to provide a spark on offense with a two-for-four day of his own.
Arrington worked two outs into the sixth inning before yielding the mound to junior pitcher Matthew Buchanan, who worked the final out of the sixth and two outs of the seventh. Sophomore pitcher Drew Koenen pitched the final 2.1 innings in his first outing since returning from injury, earning the win and putting a bow on a scoreless outing for the bullpen.
After a stressful four-game stretch, the convincing victory was a breath of fresh air with the playoffs quickly approaching. In a competitive ACC, every game — especially midweek games against teams that Virginia should beat — matters a bit more, especially considering the struggles that the Cavaliers have endured this season.
“We can’t give any games away,” Coach Brian O’Connor said. “We might not win every game, but we need to treat it like this is the end of the season. It’s gotta be that kind of urgency … They have responded over the last seven games and played our best baseball.”
Virginia will take a break this weekend for finals week before returning to action May 7 at 6 p.m. versus Towson. Then, the Cavaliers will host Miami starting May 9 for their final home series of the season.
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