The top-ranked Virginia baseball team dropped a 6-2 decision to No. 16 Miami Friday in front of 4,058 fans on a dreary evening at Davenport Field. Coming off a nine-day layoff for final exams, the Cavaliers allowed five runs (three earned) in the first inning and never recovered.
Virginia starting pitcher Danny Hultzen (Jr., Bethesda, Md.) rebounded well from the first inning, shutting the Hurricanes out on just two hits over his final six innings of work. Hultzen (9-2) pitched seven innings, giving up five runs (three earned), six hits and a walk while striking out nine. He suffered just his fourth career loss, falling to 29-4 in his three seasons at UVa.
Miami starter Bryan Radziewski (8-2) held the Cavaliers (43-6, 20-5 ACC) at bay for most of the evening. He allowed just two runs (one earned), four hits and a walk over seven innings. He struck out seven. Sam Robinson notched the game’s final out to record his sixth save.
UVa finished with just six hits from six different players. John Hicks (Jr., Sandy Hook, Va.) picked up the Cavaliers’ lone RBI of the game. Rony Rodriguez homered as part of a 2-for-3 effort for Miami (32-16, 17-7).
Zeke DeVoss led off Miami’s five-run first inning with a double and advanced to third on a wild pitch as Nathan Melendres struck out. Rodriguez walked and moved to second on a wild pitch, then advanced a base when Hicks threw the ball into center field, which allowed DeVoss to score. Harold Martinez followed with a single to score Rodriguez. Brad Fieger doubled to left-center, and Dale Carey reached on an error by shortstop Chris Taylor (So., Virginia Beach, Va.), plating another run. With two outs, Stephen Perez doubled to right field to score two more and give Miami a 5-0 lead. The final two runs each were unearned.
After Radziewski retired the first nine Cavaliers in order, Virginia broke loose for a pair of fourth-inning runs. Taylor led off with a double off the left-field wall and moved to third on a single by John Barr (Sr., Ivyland, Pa.). Hicks then ripped a double into the left-field corner, scoring Taylor and moving Barr to third.
Miami picked up an insurance run in the eighth on a solo home run by Rodriguez.
The teams play game two of the series at noon Saturday. The ACC’s Regional Sports Networks (Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic in the Virginia area) will televise the contest. WINA 1070-AM in Charlottesville and WRNL 910-AM in Richmond each will have the radio broadcast; the audio also will be streamed online at VirginiaSports.com.
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Chris Graham
