Virginia baseball blanks ODU, 4-0

Five Virginia pitchers combined for a five-hit, 4-0 shutout of Old Dominion (10-17) at Disharoon Park. The Cavaliers move to 16-13 on the season and 12-4 at home.

Virginia starting pitcher Bobby Nicholson (Charlottesville, Va.) earned his second win of the season after tossing five shutout innings. Despite plunking four batters, Nicholson did not issue a walk and fanned five Monarchs. The sophomore right-hander has pitched five-plus innings and given up only two runs in four midweek starts this season. He has pitched in two of the Cavaliers four shutouts in 2018.

“It was a nice bounce back by our ball club,” head coach Brian O’Connor said. “Other than the hit by pitches, I thought Bobby Nicholson buckled down and made some big pitches with runners in scoring position. He was able hold them at bay the first half of the game and we’re able to mix and match out of the bullpen which did a nice job.”

The pitching staffs of both teams combined to hit eight batters in the contest, five by Virginia and three by Old Dominion.

Virginia did the majority of its damage at the plate in the first inning, plating three runs. The first five batters reached base in the frame and the big hit of the inning came off the bat of Alex Tappen (Lower Gwynedd, Pa.), who singled home Cayman Richardson (Mechanicsville, Va.) and Andy Weber (Aurora, Ohio). It was Weber, a batter earlier, who brought home the game’s first run with his 11th hit in the last six games.

The combination of Nicholson, Andrew Abbott (Halifax, Va.), Mack Meyer (San Francisco, Calif.), Riley Wilson (Midlothian, Va.) and Bennett Sousa (North Palm Beach, Fla.) allowed just five Old Dominion hits and did not allow a Monarch to reach second base for seven of the last eight innings. It marked the first time this season the Monarchs had been held without a run. The five Virginia pitchers did not walk a batter, the second time the staff has not issued a single free pass in a game this season.

The Cavaliers have now won three-straight games against Old Dominion and will square off one more time this season, April 24 at Harbor Park in Norfolk.

Virginia continues its home stand this weekend with a three-game series against Virginia Tech. The first game is scheduled for Friday (April 6) at 6 p.m.