Virginia Baseball: Five Things to Know About the Super Regional vs. Kansas State

No. 12 Virginia baseball (44-15) is set to host Kansas State (35-24) in the Super Regional round of the 2024 NCAA Baseball Tournament this weekend at Disharoon Park, with the winner of the best-of-three series advancing to the 2024 College World Series.

See below for the full schedule for the Charlottesville Super Regional and read on for five things to know ahead of this weekend's clash between the Cavaliers and Wildcats with a ticket to Omaha up for grabs.

Charlottesville Super Regional Schedule
Game 1: Friday at 7pm (ESPN2)
Game 2: Saturday at 3pm (ESPNU)
Game 3 (if necessary): Sunday at 3pm (ESPNU)

1. How did these two teams get here?

Both Virginia and Kansas State went a perfect 3-0 in their respective regionals, but those outcomes were somewhat surprising in each case. Many thought the Cavaliers' apparent pitching weaknesses made them a vulnerable host, especially with a high-quality team in Mississippi State coming to town. Instead, UVA's arms led the way with by far their best all-around pitching performance of the season and went 3-0.

Arkansas was a popular pick to not just win its home regional as the No. 5 overall seed, but was also a top candidate to make it all the way to Omaha and contend for the national championship. Instead, the Razorbacks were eliminated by Southeast Missouri, allowing the No. 3 seed in the regional Kansas State to surprisingly go 3-0 behind some explosive offense, scoring 33 total runs across those three games, and win the Fayetteville Regional and advance to its second-ever Super Regional.

2. Starting Pitchers?

Virginia and Kansas State have announced their starting pitchers for the first two games of the series:

Kansas State
Game 1 - LHP Owen Boerema: 18 starts (18 appearances), 6-3 W-L, 5.07 ERA, 105 strikeouts, 45 walks in 92.1 innings
Game 2 - RHP Jackson Wentworth: 7 starts (27 appearances), 5-5 W-L, 4.11 ERA, 110 strikeouts, 25 walks, in 81.0 innings
Game 3 - TBA

Virginia
Game 1 - LHP Evan Blanco: 16 starts (16 appearances), 7-3 W-L, 3.57 ERA, 86 strikeouts, 24 walks in 85.2 innings
Game 2 - RHP Jay Woolfolk: 5 starts (22 appearances), 3-1 W-L, 6.15 ERA, 57 strikeouts, 35 walks in 52.2 innings
Game 3 - TBA

Also of note: UVA head coach Brian O'Connor said on Thursday that he thinks Kansas State closer Tyson Neighbors is "as talented as anybody in college baseball." A 6'2" righty, Neighbors has posted nine saves on the season, a 3.93 ERA, and has struck out 60 batters while surrendering only 16 walks in 36.2 innings. At least one of the games this weekend might come down to whether the vaunted UVA batting order can solve Neighbors late in a tight ballgame.

3. Two Position Players to Watch for Each Team

Kansas State
2B Brady Day: All-Big 12 First Team, .325, 9 home runs, 74 hits, 56 RBI, 47 runs
SS Kaelen Culpepper: All-Big 12 Second Team, .329, 11 home runs, 78 hits, 56 RBI. 50 runs

Virginia
SS Griff O'Ferrall: All-ACC First Team, .331, 5 home runs, 89 hits, 49 RBI, 62 runs
LF Harrison Didawick: All-ACC Second Team, .299, 23 home runs, 67 hits, 67 RBI, 76 runs

4. Tale of the Tape: Statistical Comparison for Virginia and Kansas State

Statistical comparison between Virginia and Kansas State ahead of the Super Regional at the 2024 NCAA Baseball Tournament. — Statistical comparison between Virginia and Kansas State ahead of the Charlottesville Super Regional at the 2024 NCAA Baseball Tournament. | Virginia Athletics/Kansas State Athletics

Sound Off: Quotes from UVA head coach Brian O'Connor

"We're certainly excited to still be playing this weekend, to be one of the 16 teams left in this country. We respect and understand how difficult it is to be in this position and just really proud that we're back in the Super Regional with a chance to go to Omaha."

"Sometimes this works out this way that the higher seed in the other bracket gets beat and you have an opportunity to host again the following weekend. That's worked out a handful of times for us over the years. That happened because of Kansas State. Kansas State has a very, very good ball club, plays in an excellent conference, talented players. [We've] been watching their video all week and [they have] some really good arms on the pitching staff and have a dynamic offense that puts pressure on you in different ways."

"I've talked a lot about how passionate our fans are in supporting our team. That's not just them coming out in the stadium and being sold out, which it is or will be sold out for the games this weekend, it's how much they got into the game last weekend. The chants they were doing, understanding the game, and big moments of the game - it was different last weekend. I fully expect this weekend to be the same and we're looking forward to... this is a reward for our fans as much as it is for our players and I'm excited for them to have the opportunity to continue to watch Virginia baseball as long as you can and support the team like they have all year."

See the matchups and schedule for the Super Regional round of the 2024 NCAA Baseball Tournament here.