Coming off Tuesday’s loss to VCU in Richmond, No. 9 Virginia baseball welcomed ACC basement dwellers Clemson to Disharoon Park Thursday evening. The Tigers (24-15, 5-11 ACC) have struggled immensely as of late, with their omission from all major national polls this week marking the first time since 2023 that they have not been included in a single top-25 list.
The Cavaliers (27-12, 11-8 ACC) opted for sophomore lefty Henry Zatkowski to take the mound, while the Tigers handed junior Aidan Knaak the start.
Zatkowski encountered a dangerous scenario early, as a leadoff strikeout in the first quickly gave way to a hard-hit single up the middle by Tryston McCladdie. The junior second baseman, sporting 13 stolen bases in 14 attempts going into Thursday’s matchup, utilized his legs right away to steal second.
The Cavaliers had the last laugh with McCladdie — at least, they thought they did, when a Zatkowski pickoff attempt caught him between second and third and Tiroly applied the tag. The call was safe, and a subsequent Cavalier review revealed that the tag narrowly missed McCladdie as he returned to second.
So Zatkowski had to face the Tigers’ eminent slugger, senior catcher Jacob Jarrell, with runners on first and second with just one out. His strikeout and a well-struck flyout to deep center put an end to the Clemson threat.
It would not take long for the Tigers to enter the run column, however, as a single deflected off Zatkowski’s glove turned into two runs when junior first baseman Luke Gaffney crushed a ball into the left-field grandstand. Senior outfielder Harrison Didawick made a stunning grab ranging back towards left center to end the frame, but the damage had already been done.
Junior first baseman Sam Harris was hit by a pitch to begin the bottom half of the second, but the strikeouts of junior catcher Jake Weatherspoon and junior designated hitter Antonio Perrotta appeared to stifle any surge for the Cavalier offense.
Fortunately for Coach Chris Pollard and Virginia, freshman infielder RJ Holmes put together a spectacular extended at-bat—something he has done time and time again in his new starting role — finding green grass in right field for a vital two-strike knock.
Sophomore outfielder AJ Gracia strolled to the plate and promptly hit an opposite-field homerun into left field to take the lead 3-2. The Cavaliers had hit their groove, and their reliable southpaw was beginning to find his rhythm.
Zatkowski only allowed two hits in the next five innings while collecting the final six of his 10 punchouts. With the exception of a towering moonshot off the bat of Jarrell that cleared the Clubhouse in left-center, his 15th of the year, the Tigers were at an impasse.
The Cavaliers found their point of separation in the sixth, when Weatherspoon drove a ball to the right-center field wall to clear the bases for a three-run double, extending the lead to 6-3. The elation would be short-lived, however, as a pop-fly to the catcher that fell in fair territory was ruled an infield fly. Clemson coach Erik Bakich’s consultation with the umpires and the call that followed drew the ire of all in attendance at Disharoon Park.
Pollard entered the fray in a fiery fury, immediately getting ejected. However, the reasoning for the confrontation was not what it seemed.
“The ejection had nothing to do with whether or not that was an infield fly or not,” Pollard said postgame. “I am always going to protect our players and coaches when somebody is verbally abusing them.”
Play quieted down in the aftermath of the incident, with graduate relievers Lucas Hartman and Tyler Kapa suppressing the Clemson batting order in the final two innings. Hartman allowed just one run as the bullpen solidified the 6-4 victory.
The series opener offered fans with a pitching matchup for the ages, and much of the postgame praise went to Zatkowski and his opponent in the other dugout.
“We can see what the pitches are doing. You want to talk about some true outlier stuff with him and Knaak on the mound tonight. You’re talking about two of the most unicorn changeups in all of college baseball,” Pollard said. “Henry and Aidan were both getting negative induced vertical break on their changeups, and some of those pitches were just unhittable.”
Zatkowski’s batterymate was equally as commendatory.
“He left it all out there,” Weatherspoon said. “It is really impressive for a guy whose routine has been shaken around a bit to just stick to himself and do what works.”
The Cavaliers and Tigers will resume play on Friday, with the second contest of their three-game set beginning at 6 p.m.
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