Baseball Tops Virginia, 9-6

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May 10, 1998

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Senior second baseman Ryan Gilleland (Forest, Va.) hit a three-run homer and tied the all-time UVa record for career runs batted in, but it was not enough as the University of Virginia baseball team fell to 11th-ranked Florida State 9-6.

With his three RBI in the game Gilleland now has 166 in his career, tying the mark originally set by Bill Narleski, who played from 1984-87. The Cavaliers fall to 27-24-1 overall and 5-18 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, while the Seminoles improve to 45-16 overall and 17-4 in the ACC.

Florida State scored three runs in the top of the first and added four more in the top of the third to take a commanding 7-0 lead early in the game. Matt Diaz hit an RBI double to drive home the Seminoles first run, while Karl Jernigan added an RBI single in the first inning. In the third, Diaz hit a two-run double and also stole home, while Brett Groves had a sacrifice fly.

The Cavaliers scored their first two runs in the bottom of the third to make the score 7-2. Junior outfielder Julian Gonzalez (Avon Park, Fla.) hit a solo homer to left field, his fifth on the season, while freshman catcher Mark Rueffert (Herndon, Va.) tripled and scored on an RBI groundout by junior first baseman Javier Lopez (Fairfax, Va.). Virginia added another run in the bottom of the fifth to make the score 7-3, as Gonzalez singled and scored on an RBI double by Rueffert.

The Seminoles added two more runs in the top of the seventh to make the score 9-3. Kevin Cash hit a sacrifice fly, while Diaz drove in the final run with an RBI single. The Cavaliers would then concluded the scoring with three runs in the bottom of the eighth to make the score 9-6. Senior third baseman Brian Sherlock (Medford, N.J.) and senior outfielder E.J. Anderson (Mechanicsville, Va.) both drew walks, before Gilleland hit a three-run homer to left field, his ninth on the season.

Righthander John Bentley picked up the win for Florida State to move his record to 6-1, as he allowed three runs on six hits in five innings of work. Righthander Scott Proctor earned a save for the Seminoles, tossing 1-2/3 innings of scoreless relief to close out the game. Freshman lefthander Greg Withelder (Wallingford, Pa.) took the loss for Virginia, allowing six earned runs on five hits in five innings, to fall to 2-3. Freshman righthander Tommy Keiper (Chesapeake, Va.) threw well in relief for the Cavaliers, allowing only one earned run on three hits in four innings.

The Cavaliers return to action on Tuesday, May 12, when they open play in the ACC Tournament. Virginia will face Maryland at 7:30 p.m. at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, N.C.

Final Score
Florida State 9, Virginia 6

                                                       R   H   EFlorida State   3   0   4   0   0   0   2   0  0   -   9   8   1Virginia        0   0   2   0   1   0   0   3  0   -   6   8   4 

FSU: John Bentley, Zach Diaz (6), Chris Ginn (7), Mike Smalley (8), Scott Proctor (8) and Jeremiah Klosterman

UVa: Greg Withelder, Tommy Keiper (6) and Mark Rueffert

2B: Brian Cox (FSU), Matt Diaz (FSU), Javier Lopez (UVa), Tim LaVigne (UVa), Mark Rueffert (UVa); 3B: Mark Rueffert (UVa)

HR: Ryan Gilleland (UVa), Julian Gonzalez (UVa)

Win: McDonald (9-3); Loss: Lopez (5-5); Save: DiBlasi (4).