#25 UVa. holds on for 7-5 win over UR
The No. 25 Virginia baseball team defeated Richmond, 7-5, Tuesday night at Davenport Field. UVa scored a pair of runs in the seventh inning to break a 5-5 tie en route to the win.
Stephen Bruno (Jr., Audubon, N.J.) continued his hot hitting with a 3-for-5 night as he extended his hitting streak to 10 games. One of five freshmen in the starting lineup, Nate Irving (Fr., Yonkers, N.Y.) knocked in three runs for Virginia (24-13-1). Mike Papi (Fr., Tunkhannock, Pa.) homered and scored twice for UVa. Read more
UVa. women top Richmond in WNIT
The Virginia women’s basketball team defeated in-state foe Richmond, 68-55, Monday (March 19) in the second round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). The Cavaliers advance to host Appalachian State in the third round on Thursday (March 22) at 7 p.m. at John Paul Jones Arena.
With the win, UVa improved to 24-10 overall on the season and 16-3 at JPJA. Richmond concluded its season with a 23-9 record. Read more
UVa. backup transfers to Richmond
Head football coach Danny Rocco has announced redshirt-freshman quarterback Michael Strauss will transfer from the University of Virginia and has enrolled at the University of Richmond, effective with Monday’s start of the spring semester.
“We are very excited to announce the signing of transfer quarterback Michael Strauss out of Miami, Florida,” said Rocco. “Michael was in a quarterback battle at the University of Virginia before deciding to transfer at the end of the semester. This addition will offer us another option at the quarterback position heading into spring football. The competition will benefit all the quarterbacks in our program and I am excited to evaluate their progress.” Read more
Late rally falls short for #5 Richmond
Senior WR Tre Gray had a career night with 16 catches for 194 yards, but No. 5 Richmond’s furious fourth-quarter comeback fell short in a 45-43 shootout loss to No. 11 New Hampshire Saturday at Robins Stadium.
The Spiders (3-1, 0-1) put three touchdowns on the board in a frantic fourth-quarter but were back-broken when UNH QB Kevin Decker hit R.J. Harris for a quick-strike 47-yard touchdown that put the Wildcats (2-1, 1-0) up 45-36 with 2:45 left.
Richmond, though had one more answer as senior QB Aaron Corp, who also posted career numbers, marched the Spiders downfield with a 12-play, 77-yard drive, capped by a Kendall Gaskins one-yard touchdown with 28 seconds remaining that pulled Richmond within 45-43.
An onside kick ensured and Richmond kicker Wil Kamin blasted a line-drive that ricocheted off a UNH player and into the arms of diving Tre Gray. But the ball changed hands in the scrum and the officials ruled it belonged to the Wildcats, sealing the thriller at sold-out Robins Stadium in the CAA Football opener for both teams.
Corp finished the game 35-of-50 passing for 351 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The senior was a spotless five-for-five on the Spiders’ opening drive, passing for 53 yards and putting Richmond up 7-0 with his one-yard toss to Stephen Barnette. Corp completed his first nine of the game.
Two possessions later, Corp moved the Spiders into field-goal range following a Darryl Hamilton interception and Kamin drilled a 36-yarder that made it 10-0.
Richmond dominated the stat sheet, out-gaining the Wildcats 475-368 in total offense, owning a 13-minute advantage in time of possession and scoring points on all seven of its Red Zone trips (five touchdowns).
But things unraveled quickly and the Spiders went from up 10 to down 15, thanks in part to a pair of Corp interceptions on tipped balls that were returned for touchdowns. Randi Vines rumbled 60 yards for a score that gave the visitors a 14-10 lead early in the second quarter. Ten minutes later, Matt Evans swiped the ball out of the air and his 31-yard interception return gave UNH a 28-13 advantage.
Gaskins, who finished with 81 yards rushing and a career-high three touchdowns, got the first of his three scores on some trickery as he took a pitch on a fake field goal try and scored from six yards out, breathing life back into the Spiders late in the first half and cutting the deficit to 28-20.
Decker threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns and also rushed for 48 yards and two more scores, scampered in from 12-yards on the opening possession of the second half to give UNH its 15-point advantage back.
The teams traded field goals before the Spiders 20-point fourth-quarter uprising. Kamin matched his career-high of three field goals made (36, 45 and 37 yards) and set a career high with 13 points scored.
For Gray, his 194-yard effort stands as the seventh-best single-game performance in school history and is the most yards by a Richmond receiver since Rod Boothes had 197 versus James Madison in 1992. His 16 catches ties the second-highest single-game performance in school history (16 by Walker Gillette vs. Mississippi State in 1969), only trailing 20 grabs by Gillette vs. Ohio in the 1968 Tangerine Bowl.
Gray is averaging 126.0 yards receiving this season and is now just 17 catches and 252 yards shy of the respective UR career records.
The loss snapped a six-game home winning streak for the Spiders, who hit the road next Saturday for another key CAA Football tilt at James Madison. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. Bridgeforth Stadium.
UR holds off VMI
Senior WR Tre Gray’s 96-yard, two-touchdown effort helped No. 6 Richmond build a 34-0 lead in third quarter and hold off VMI, 34-19, Saturday night at sold-out Robins Stadium.
Gray, who is averaging 103.3 yards receiving this season, matched his career-high with two touchdown receptions, and moved to a tie for 10th on Richmond’s career list with 12 touchdowns to lead his Spiders (3-0) to their ninth-consecutive win over the Keydets (0-3).
Senior QB Aaron Corp was 12-for-18 passing with 220 yards and two touchdowns and the Spiders feasted on VMI’s first-half miscues to build a 27-0 lead at the half and extend the margin to 34-0 midway through the third quarter.
Richmond opened the scoring with a dazzling special teams play early in the contest when freshman Rodney Barnes busted through the line and swatted away Cameron Murray’s punt. Sophomore WR Ben Edwards scooped up the loose ball and returned it 34 yards for the score.
VMI’s ensuing possession ended when senior S Colin Pehanick forced a Chaz Jones fumble that was pounced on by Jacob Pierce. Junior K Wil Kamin booted a pair of 31-yard field goals and Gray reeled in a 37-yard TD pass from Corp as the Spiders cashed in 13 points off three VMI fumbles – two of which came on muffed punts.
Gray found paydirt again on a four-yard TD reception to cap a four-play, 77-yard drive before halftime that put Richmond up 27-0. Two big pass plays set up that score as Corp hit junior TE Kevin Finney for 11 yards on second-and-17 and then connected with redshirt freshman WR Stephen Barnette for a 69-yard strike on third-and-six.
Finney finished with four catches for 28 yards, while Barnette established a career-high with 89 yards on three grabs. All three of Barnette’s catches moved the chains – two came on third-and-long situations.
Pehanick finished with six tackles, forced a fumble and recovered another. Junior LB Darius McMillan was in on a team-leading 11 tackles, while senior DB Tremayne Graham had eight stops and broke up three passes.
But VMI didn’t go quietly. A 74-yard kickoff return by Tracy Hairston resulted in a 28-yard field goal with seven minutes left in the third quarter that snapped the shutout.
A 21-yard touchdown strike from Eric Kordenbrock to Hairston made it 34-10 with 11:17 left and things got dicey when Kordenbrock hooked up with Mario Thompson for a 70-yard TD pass less than three minutes later.
Richmond punted on the ensuing drive and a 47-yard return from Trent White, along with a Spider penalty gave VMI first-and-goal at the nine. But Richmond’s defense bowed up, stopping Jones on third-and-goal at the one and forcing an incompletion on fourth down with five minutes left.
Richmond took a safety on punt in their end zone, and then stopped VMI again with just over a minute remaining to put the victory on ice.
Kordenbrock finished 15-of-35 passing for 231 yards and two touchdowns, while Thompson finished as the game’s leading receiver with two catches for 114 yards. Hairston rolled up 212 all-purpose yards thanks to his 55 yards through the air and 157 more on five kickoff returns.
For Richmond, junior Kendall Gaskins rushed 14 times for 67 yards and his third touchdown in as many games this season. Senior Garrett Turner carried for a career-high 21 times for 79 yards.
The Spiders are 3-0 for the first time since opening the 2009 season 8-0 and open CAA Football play next Saturday versus New Hampshire at Robin Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. on Family Weekend.
#9 UR knocks off Wagner
Senior QB Aaron Corp threw for a career-high 236 yards and two touchdowns and No. 9 Richmond recovered from a balky first half to beat Wagner, 21-6, Saturday night at a sold-out Robins Stadium.
Corp put Richmond (2-0) on the board early, hitting sophomore WR Ben Edwards for a 56-yard touchdown pass on the game’s third play, but the Spiders leaned heavily on their defense after turnovers on the five-consecutive possessions after the touchdown.
Wagner managed just three points off its first-half takeaways, and Richmond took care of the ball in the second half, while rolling up 412 yards of total offense to secure its 13th-consecutive victory over non-conference FCS opponents in the regular season.
Junior LB Darius McMillan made 10 tackles, senior S Colin Pehanick had seven stops and an interception, while sophomore DE Kerry Wynn recorded two of Richmond’s three sacks as the Spiders limited Wagner (1-1) to just 189 yards of total offense (68 yards rushing).
Junior TE Kevin Finney hauled in a six-yard TD pass from Corp that capped a nine-play, 72-yard drive midway through the third quarter. A 32-yard hook-up from Corp to Stephen Barnette helped set-up the score that put Richmond up 14-3.
A 45-yard field goal from David Lopez cut the margin to 14-6 on Wagner’s next possession, but junior FB Kendall Gaskins, who finished with 98 yards on a career-high 24 carries, put the game on ice when he punched in a one-yard TD early in the fourth quarter.
Corp finished the night 16-of-25 passing for 236 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Senior RB Garrett Turner carried 15 times for 75 yards, while senior WR Tre Gray had six catches for 85 yards.
Richmond owned a seven-minute advantage in time of possessions and converted on seven of its 12 third-down attempts.
The Spiders remain home next Saturday to host long-time rival VMI at Robins Stadium. Kick off in the 87th all-time meeting with the Keydets is set for 6 p.m.
Fourteen drivers have chance in Richmond to qualify for Chase
When NASCAR announced its new-for-2011 Chase “Wild Card” element earlier this year, this is probably the scenario they envisioned heading into Saturday night’s “One Last Race to Make The Chase”—the Wonderful Pistachios 400 at Richmond International Raceway. An unprecedented 14 drivers have a shot at three remaining spots in the 12-driver 2011 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, which should make for some unbelievable beating, banging, flaring tempers and fireworks at America’s Premier Short Track.
Following Tuesday’s race in Atlanta, nine drivers are locked in, but an unbelievable 14 drivers still have a chance at racing their way into The Chase with just Saturday night’s Wonderful Pistachios 400 remaining before the field is set.
· Dale Earnhardt Jr.: A finish of 20th or better will lock him into The Chase. Even if Keselowski does knock Earnhardt out of the top 10, he could still earn a Chase berth if there is only one winner from spots 11th to 20th, a mathematical possibility.
· Tony Stewart: A finish of 18th or better will lock him into The Chase. Like Earnhardt, even if Keselowski does knock Stewart out of the top 10, Stewart could still earn a Chase berth if there is only one winner from spots 11th to 20th.
· Denny Hamlin: A win and he’s in. Hamlin doesn’t have to win, though. If he stays ahead of all one-win drivers, and there are no other two-win drivers inside the top 20, he’s in The Chase. Also, if Keselowski does vault into the top 10, Hamlin could still make The Chase if there is a two-win driver from 11th to 20th as long as he’s higher in points than any other one-win driver.
· AJ Allmendinger: Allmendinger is where the Wild Card drama starts to ratchet up. A win is the ONLY thing that matters for him, and a number of other drivers. He’ll need a win and movement up the points to nab the tie-breaker. He finished seventh at Richmond in April.
· Clint Bowyer: Of the winless drivers, Bowyer might be the best bet. Bowyer won here in 2008, and has an average finish of 9.5. He needs a win, and poor finishes by other drivers.
· Greg Biffle: One of six winless drivers who won in 2010, Biffle’s best Richmond finish was third in 2005. He needs a win, and poor finishes by other drivers.
· Martin Truex Jr.: Two of his last four finishes this season have been in the top five. His best Richmond finish is fifth in 2008. He needs a win, and poor finishes by other drivers.
· Kasey Kahne: Kahne, who needs a win and poor finishes by other drivers, won at Richmond in 2005, his first career victory.
· Joey Logano: Needs a win and poor finishes by other drivers; best Richmond finish: fourth in this race last season.
· Mark Martin: Needs a win and poor finishes by other drivers; won at Richmond in 1990.
· Paul Menard: Win, and he’s in. Pretty simple. His finishes at Richmond haven’t been so easy. His best: 16th in 2007.
· Marcos Ambrose: If he wins, and gets into the top 20, he’s in. Consider him a solid dark horse candidate. Two of his last three Richmond finishes were in the top 10.
· Juan Pablo Montoya: Needs a win and poor finishes by other drivers. Best finish was sixth in May of last year.
· David Ragan: If he wins, and gets into the top 20, he’s in. Ragan finished fourth in April and third in 2007.
