Virginia (20-16) closes out a 10-game home stand with a non-conference matchup against George Washington (20-15) on Tuesday (April 17) and Liberty (22-12) on Wednesday (April 18). First pitch for both contests will be at 6 p.m.
Game Coverage: The two games will air on ACC Network Extra is a dedicated digital channel for ACC sports which is available to authenticated subscribers of ESPN3 through WatchESPN and the ESPN app at no additional charge.
The midweek contests can also be heard locally on 1070 AM / 98.9 AM and on WINA.com. Links for the radio broadcast as well as the game’s live stats feed are available on VirginiaSports.com. Fans can follow in-game updates on the team’s official twitter page (@UVABaseball).
Promotions
Tuesday’s game against George Washington is a “$2 Tuesday” where popcorn will be sold for $2 throughout Disharoon Park.
Clear Bag Policy
Consistent with what is already in place at Scott Stadium, John Paul Jones Arena and Klöckner Stadium fans attending games at Disharoon Park this season must adhere to the department’s clear bag policy and entrance procedures. Details of the of the policy can be found here: http://www.virginiasports.com/facilities/clear_bag_Davenport_Klockner.html
Probable Starting Pitchers
Tuesday
- George Washington: LHP Kevin Hodgson (1-0, 7.91 ERA, 19.1 IP, 18 BB, 18 SO)
- Virginia: RHP Bobby Nicholson (2-1, 1.76 ERA, 30.2 IP, 12 BB, 29 SO)
Wednesday
- Liberty: TBA
- Virginia: TBA
Leading Off
• Virginia has won 14 of the last 15 games against George Washington, including each of the last eight meetings.
• Virginia swept a midweek home and home series against the Flames in 2017. The Cavaliers have won eight-straight in the all-time series since Liberty’s 8-0 shutout in 2012.
• The Cavaliers swept last year’s home and home midweek series against Liberty for the second time in three years.
• Head Coach Brian O’Connor is 12-1 against George Washington and 13-1 against Liberty during his tenure at Virginia.
• At home this season, Virginia is 6-1 in midweek games and 16-7 overall at Disharoon Park.
• The Cavaliers are 13-5 against non-conference opponents this season and 8-3 against teams from the Commonwealth.
Weekend Recap
• In its first game against a ranked opponent since the season opener, Virginia blanked then-No. 22 North Carolina, 4-0 in the series opener.
• Derek Casey (6.0 IP) and Andrew Abbott (3.0 IP) combined for the team’s sixth shutout of the season on Friday. Abbott faced the minimum over the final three innings, striking out five batters.
• The Cavaliers nearly clinched the series in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday with a three-run rally in the eighth to tie the score at six. The Tar Heels plated two in the top of the ninth to eventually even the series.
• North Carolina took advantage of 10 walks and four Virginia errors in the nightcap to take the series.
• Prior to this past weekend, Virginia had split its last eight doubleheaders.
• Cayman Richardson went 5-for-11 (.455) with three runs scored and three RBI in the series.
Team Rankings
• The Virginia pitching staff leads the ACC and is fifth in the country with 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings.
• With three shutouts in league play, Virginia is tied with Miami for the most in the ACC.
• The Cavaliers are third in the league with 63 doubles.
• Virginia had nine hits in each of the three games and have 332 on the season, the fourth most in the ACC.
• As a team, Cavalier batters have combined to strike out 196 times, the lowest total in the league.
Player/Notes Trends
• Cayman Richardson is currently on a team-best, 11-game hit streak. He is the fourth Cavalier this season to put together a streak of 10 games or more. Nate Eikhoff started the season hitting safely in the first 16 games.
• Andy Weber not only has hit safely in his last eight games but has reached base in 22-straight, the most by a Cavalier this season. Weber has a hit in all but four games this season.
• Weber ranks third in the ACC with a .366 batting average and is tied for second in the league with 53 hits.
• Cameron Comer is 9-for-19 (.474) with two doubles and two RBIs. He led off the three-run eighth inning of game one of Saturday’s doubleheader with his sixth double of the year. He has played every all 27 innings over the weekend and has made 13-straight starts at catcher.
• Freshman Brendan Rivoli drove in two of the Cavaliers six runs in the final game of a Saturday’s doubleheader. He homered in the fourth inning, his second long ball in his last six games played.
Looking Ahead
• Virginia will play the next four games on the road beginning with a three-game series against Louisville this weekend.
• The Cavaliers have No. 15 Clemson (home), Georgia Tech (home) and Wake Forest (away) left on its ACC slate.
Noting George Washington
• The Colonials begin a 10-game road swing with Tuesday night’s game at Disharoon Park.
• George Washington is the top hitting team in the Atlantic 10 with a team batting average of .294. The Colonials have scored 233 runs and collected 356 hits, also tops in the A10.
• Over the weekend, the Colonials dropped their first conference series of the season, losing two out of three at home against Richmond. George Washington is 4-10 in games away from home in 2018.
• Senior Isaiah Pasteur is riding a 23-game hit streak.
Noting Liberty
• The Flames come into Wednesday’s game winners of eight of their last nine games, including a series sweep over Charleston Southern this past weekend.
• The Wednesday night meeting begins a five-game stint away from Lynchburg on Wednesday night.
• Outfielder/Catcher Tre Todd was named Big South Player of the Week after hitting three home runs and sporting a .667 batting average in four games. Mason Hand was named the Big South Reliever of the Week after eight scoreless innings in a 6-5 comeback win over Richmond in the midweek.
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