Adam Haseley (Jr., Windermere, Fla.) and Robbie Coman (Gr., Lake Worth, Fla.) each homered twice as the No. 13 UVA baseball team picked up a 7-3 win over Rutgers Friday at Davenport Field. Haseley and Coman became the first Virginia duo to hit two homers in the same game since Jon Benick and Dan Street on April 18, 2001, at Virginia Tech.
“Tonight was a great Friday night of baseball – two really good teams,” Virginia head coach Brian O’Connor said. “Haseley and Coman were pretty spectacular. Alec Bettinger did a nice job coming out of the bullpen and closing things down and settling the game down from a pitching standpoint. I was proud of our guys and glad to get a win.”
Both Haseley and Coman recorded their first career multi-home run performances. Haseley went 4-for-4 and drove in a career-high five RBI. He also matched a career high with four hits. Coman racked up a career-high four hits, going 4-for-5 with a pair of solo homers, which doubled his career total.
Jake McCarthy (So., Scranton, Pa.) also reached base in all five of his plate appearances (2 singles, 2 HBP, BB). Ten of the Cavaliers’ 12 hits came from the aforementioned trio.
Virginia starting pitcher Daniel Lynch (So., Henrico, Va.) worked 5 1/3 innings, giving up three earned runs, seven hits and four walks while striking out three. He earned the win to improve to 2-0 this season. Bettinger (Woodbridge, Va.) worked 2 2/3 scoreless innings before handing the ball off to Tommy Doyle (Jr., Vienna, Va.), who pitched a scoreless ninth.
Rutgers starting pitcher John O’Reilly (0-2) worked five innings, giving up four earned runs, nine hits and a walk in taking the loss. The Scarlet Knights picked up 10 hits in the defeat.
RU struck first with consecutive hits in the first inning, as Mike Carter doubled to center and Christian Campbell followed with an RBI single to left.
Virginia quickly countered in the bottom of the inning when Haseley cranked a two-run home run off the left-field foul pole, his second homer of the season. UVA then registered three straight two-out singles from Ernie Clement (Jr., Rochester, N.Y.), McCarthy and Haseley to take a 3-1 lead in the second inning.
Rutgers capitalized on a pair of third-inning walks to score with two outs when Milo Freeman singled to center to plate Carter. UVA responded on the first pitch of its half of the third when Coman homered into the left-field bleachers for his third career long ball.
The Scarlet Knights cut their deficit in half once again in the fifth inning on a two-out RBI single from Freeman. Rutgers loaded the bases with two outs, but Lynch buckled down to strike out Chris Folinusz swinging to end the inning.
UVA again used the long ball to stretch its lead to 7-3 in the sixth against reliever Eric Reardon as Haseley launched a towering two-run blast to left-center and Coman followed one out later with a rocket into the left-field bleachers. Each of Haseley’s home runs this season has gone to the opposite field.
The teams continue the series at 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
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Chris Graham
