Cavaliers Now

Virginia Baseball Earns Ranked Series Win at No. 24 Georgia Tech

Matthew Newton|
Virginia Athletics

The Virginia baseball team (24-16, 11-10 ACC) picked up a crucial ACC series win on the road against a ranked opponent, taking two out of three games against No. 24 Georgia Tech (30-14, 15-9 ACC) this weekend at Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Let's take a look at how the Cavaliers earned this big series win.

Game 1: Virginia 12, Georgia Tech 9

The Cavaliers got on the board first with a couple of extra base hits in the top of the second inning, as Harrison Didawick scored Henry Godbout with a triple down the right field line and then Didawick came around to score on a double from James Nunnallee. The Yellow Jackets fired back by scoring three runs on Jay Woolfolk in the bottom of the third, but the Hoos then erupted for seven runs in their next turn at the plate, with all seven of those runs coming on home runs. Nunnallee followed up his RBI double with a two-run home run, Aidan Teel hit a two-run home run, and then Godbout joined the party with a three-run blast to make it 9-3.

Georgia Tech scored three more runs on Woolfolk in the bottom of the fourth, but UVA again had an answer, as Eric Becker hit a two-run single in the top of the fifth to push the Cavalier lead back to 11-6. Kevin Jaxel put zeroes on the board for Virginia in the fifth and sixth frames and then both teams pushed one run across in the seventh. After a scoreless eighth inning, Georgia Tech hit a pair of solo home runs off of Wes Arrington in the top of the ninth to make things a little interesting at 12-9. Matt Lanzendorfer entered the game and retired the first two batters he faced to secure Virginia's victory in the series opener.

Game 2: Virginia 6, Georgia Tech 5

The story of game 2 was the dazzling pitching performance by UVA starter Bradley Hodges, who pitched a career-high seven innings, matched a career-high with seven strikeouts, and gave up just one run on two hits in his first-ever ACC start. That lone run came early in the game, as Georgia Tech answered a solo homer from Eric Becker in the top of the first with an RBI groundout in the bottom half. The Yellow Jackets wouldn't score another run until the eighth inning. Virginia also didn't score again until the sixth, as Hodges and Georgia Tech starter Brady Jones were both lights-out from the mound.

UVA claimed the lead in the top of the sixth on a solo home run from Henry Ford and the Cavaliers added two more runs in the seventh on a two-run single by Eric Becker. Harrison Didawick blasted a two-run shot to right field in the eight, providing what ended up being crucial insurance runs. Georgia Tech scored one in the eighth on a solo homer and then loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth. The Yellow Jackets managed to score three runs to make it 6-5 with the tying run on second base, but Alex Markus entered the game and struck out the first batter he faced to end the game as Virginia hung on for a thrilling 6-5 win.

Game 3: Virginia 6, Georgia Tech 7 (10 inn.)

With the series win already in hand, the Cavaliers took aim at a series sweep on Sunday. The game started well for Virginia, as Becker delivered a two-run home run in the top of the first before the first out was even recorded. Georgia Tech got one back in the bottom of the first, but UVA starter Tomas Valincius did well after that and the Yellow Jackets were held scoreless until the sixth. By then, Virginia had taken a 4-1 lead after scoring a couple of runs in the top of the fifth.

Georgia Tech scored twice in the bottom of the sixth, but the Cavaliers came back with two runs of their own in the top of the seventh as Aidan Teel hit a two-run home run to give Virginia a 6-3 lead. Georgia Tech hit a solo homer in the bottom of the seventh, but the Cavaliers still took a 6-4 advantage to the bottom of the ninth. This time, though, the lead didn't hold as Evan Blanco gave up a game-tying two-run home run to Drew Burress. The Yellow Jackets ended the game in the 10th, as Blanco gave up the walk-off solo homer to Kent Schmidt.

Despite the loss in the series finale, Virginia has still won four its last five games and is back above .500 in ACC play at 11-10 in league action and 24-16 overall. Up next, the Cavaliers return to Charlottesville to begin a seven-game homestand. Virginia will host VCU on Tuesday at 8pm ET and then Navy on Wednesday at 4pm ET at Disharoon Park before taking a week off for exams.

Published
Matt Newton
MATTHEW NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.

Share on XFollow mattynewtss