#11 Virginia scored five runs with two outs in the fifth, and Brian Gursky improved to 7-0 with a 6-3 win over #7 Virginia Tech on Saturday at The Dish.
The Cavaliers (33-11, 14-9 ACC) evened the series with the Hokies (30-10, 13-8 ACC), with the rubber match scheduled for an 11 a.m. first pitch on Sunday.
Prior to the game, the Virginia baseball program retired the number 11 in honor of UVA baseball Hall of Famer and World Series champion Ryan Zimmerman.
Sophomore Jake Gelof got the largest crowd in Virginia baseball history on its feet with a solo home run in the fourth to break a scoreless tie. The long ball was his 17th of the season, the third most in a single season of any Virginia baseball player in program history and the most in the Brian O’Connor era (2004-present).
Virginia sent nine batters to the plate in the fifth and plated five runs in an inning for the 23rd time this season. Four-straight singles from Kyle Teel, Alex Tappen, Gelof and Devin Ortiz broke the game open. Ortiz capped the big inning with a two-run single down the left field line and has now hit safely in 11-straight games.
Virginia Tech’s Carson DeMartini led off the sixth with a single and was the first Hokie batter to reach since the first inning. Tanner Schoebel was credited with an RBI in the frame, and Gavin Cross scored when Schoebel attempted to steal second base.
Cavalier reliever Brandon Neeck pitched the final three innings and struck out four to earn his second save of the season. Neeck allowed just one hit, a solo homer in the ninth to Schoebel.
Postgame: Virginia coach Brian O’Connor
“A bounce back win for us. Certainly, we knew, both teams did, that this was going be a great series. Virginia Tech’s got an excellent ballclub. (Drue) Hackenberg was outstanding, the first three or four innings and fortunately Gelof was able to get the ball out of here and the next inning we were able to string a bunch of hits together, which we’ve been pretty good at this year. I know a lot has been made about how many home runs we hit in the first half but really lately, we’ve been good at putting a bunch of hits together and taking advantage of opportunities to have a big inning. We’re fortunate to do that in the middle of the game. I thought Gursky was outstanding. He gave us a high-quality start. That changeup is one of the better ones that I’ve coached. He’s just really done a terrific job all year long for us. I just thought this game was so important to bounce back and (Brandon) Neeck has been outstanding of the bullpen and just decided to go right to him in the seventh inning. There’s the example of him being built up as a starter in the beginning of the year so he’s built up enough to not necessarily be your traditional closer. You can use him for three or plus innings if you need to. I thought he was really, really good. Great bounce back win and then tomorrow should be another great ballgame.”
Game 3 preview
The rubber match scheduled for Sunday (May 1) has been moved to 11 a.m. due to inclement weather in the forecast. The Cavaliers will have lefty Jake Berry (5-2) on the hill. Virginia Tech will have righthander Jordan Geber (0-1) on the mound. The contest is scheduled to air on ACCNX and can be heard on WINA (98.9 FM/1070 AM).
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Chris Graham
