#16 UVA baseball snaps losing skid, blows out JMU, 14-1

The No. 16 Virginia baseball team recorded season highs in hits and runs in a 14-1 triumph over James Madison Wednesday evening at Davenport Field. The Cavaliers (20-12) pounded out 18 hits in the contest, which was delayed for one hour, 27 minutes in the bottom of the first inning because of a thunderstorm.

Every Virginia starter recorded at least one hit. Thomas Woodruff (Sr., Clifton, Va.) racked up a career-high four hits and scored three runs, while Adam Haseley (Fr., Windermere, Fla.) picked up three hits and scored three runs. Kenny Towns (Sr., Burke, Va.) homered and drove in five runs for the Cavaliers.

UVa starter Derek Casey (Fr., Mechanicsville, Va.) worked around the rain delay and pitched four solid innings to earn the win and improve to 3-1. He gave an earned run, three hits and one walk. JMU starter Tucker McCoy (1-3) gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning before the rain delay and was tagged with the loss.

Virginia scored multiple runs in each of the first three innings to jump out to an early 10-1 lead. The Cavaliers needed just two batters to score, as Haseley led off with a single, advanced on a wild pitch and came home on a Daniel Pinero (So., Toronto, Ontario) RBI single. One out later, Towns homered to left field, his second blast of the year, to give UVa a 3-0 lead.

After the rain delay in the bottom of the first, the Cavaliers came out hot again, scoring four runs in the second inning. The first five UVa batters reached base safely. Woodruff hit a leadoff single, stole second and scored on a Haseley single. Pinero doubled and Matt Thaiss (So., Jackson, N.J.) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Towns singled in a pair and two batters later, Kevin Doherty (Jr., Laytonsville, Md.) singled to bring Thaiss home.

JMU scored its lone run in the third inning as Kyle Weston crossed the plate on a Kevin Husum grounder. UVa added three runs in its half of the third. With none out and runners on first and second, Pinero laid down a sacrifice bunt, but pitcher Mark Gunst threw the ball away, allowing a run to score. One out later, Towns and Pavin Smith (Fr., Jupiter, Fla.) hit back-to-back RBI grounders to push the lead to 10-1.

UVa tacked on a pair of runs in the sixth inning on RBI singles from Woodruff and Thaiss. The Cavaliers scored their final two runs in the eighth inning as Haseley scored on a passed ball and Smith drove in Thaiss with a single.

Virginia heads to Atlanta this weekend for a three-game ACC series with Georgia Tech. The series consists of games at 7 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. Each game will be broadcast online by ESPN3.