Virginia Looks To Weaken Georgia Tech's Sting When The Ramblin' Wreck Rolls Into Charlottesville
Story Links
May 9, 2003
‘HOO, WHAT, WHEN?: Virginia will face the nationally ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series on May 9-11 at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium. UVa and GT will begin the series on Friday, May 9th at 7:00 PM. Game two of the series is scheduled for Saturday, May 10th at 7:00 PM and the final contest of the three-game series is set for Sunday, May 11th at 1:00 PM.
ALL-TIME SERIES: Georgia Tech leads the all-time series with Virginia 53-27-1. However, the series has been very even in games played in Charlottesville, Va. with GT holding a slight 17-16 advantage in those contests. The Yellow Jackets hold a 31-9-1 lead in games played in Atlanta, Ga. and Georgia Tech is 5-2 against Virginia in games played on a neutral field.
LAST TIME THEY MET: Virginia ended a 14-year losing streak to Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Ga. that dated back to the 1988 season and broke a string of 18 consecutive games it had lost to the Yellow Jackets at Russ Chandler Stadium following UVa’s 5-1 victory over GT on April 26, 2002. However, Georgia Tech bounced back and won the next two contests 3-2 (in 12 innings) on April 27th and 9-3 on April 28th to win the three-game series two games to one. The last time GT visited Charlottesville (March 30-April 1, 2000), UVa also won one out of three games when the Cavaliers posted a 3-1 victory before falling 10-3 and 13-9 in the finals two contests. Virginia has won the first contest in the last two three-game series played between the two schools.
UVA’S PROBABLE PITCHING ROTATION FOR GT: Virginia is expected to pitch the trio of Andrew Dobies (LHP), Chris Gale (RHP) and Joe Koshansky (LHP) in its three-games series against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on May 9-11. Dobies (6-1) will start Friday, Gale (3-4) will start on Saturday and Koshansky (7-0) will put his perfect record on the line on Sunday.
Date Pitcher (throws) Record ERA SOMay 9 Andrew Dobies (LHP) 6-1 3.50 62May 10 Chris Gale (RHP) 3-4 4.56 25May 11 Joe Koshansky (LHP) 7-0 1.79 37
UVA VS. THE ACC: Virginia is 3-3 in its Atlantic Coast Conference series against conference opponents this year. UVa has defeated Duke (3-0), Maryland (2-0) and Wake Forest (2-1) and has lost to Florida State (3-0), Clemson (2-1) and N.C. State (2-1). FSU is the only team Virginia has not beaten at least once that it has played this year from the ACC. Here is a closer look at UVa vs. the ACC:
Opponent Results Date UVa's ACC Record@ Florida State L, 9-1 3/14 0-1@ Florida State L, 4-0 3/15 0-2@ Florida State L, 5-4 3/16 0-3Duke W, 13-1 3/21 1-3Duke W, 9-2 3/22 2-3Duke W, 6-0 3/23 3-3Maryland W, 6-0 3/28 4-3Maryland W, 4-2 3/29 5-3@ Clemson L, 9-4 4/4 5-4@ Clemson W, 4-1 4/5 6-4@ Clemson L, 9-2 4/6 6-5N.C. State L, 7-1 4/19 6-6N.C. State L, 3-2 4/19 6-7N.C. State W, 8-3 4/20 7-7@ Wake Forest L, 2-1 4/25 7-8@ Wake Forest W, 13-2 4/26 8-8@ Wake Forest W, 6-4 4/27 9-8
‘HOOS BY THE MONTH: Entering the month of May, Virginia is hoping it can turn out to be more like March when the Cavaliers finished an eye-opening 16-5 for the month. Virginia was 1-3 in February and finished 9-10 in the month of April. Here is a breakdown of UVa’s record by the month:
Month UVa's Record Total GamesFebruary 1-3 4March 16-5 21April 9-10 19
VIRGINIA’S HOME WINNING STREAK STOPPED AT 16 GAMES: Following its 6-1 loss to #12 Miami on April 11th at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium, Virginia’s school-record 16 game home winning streak came to an end. Here is a look at all of Virginia’s home game results:
Opponent Date Result ScoreJames Madison 3/4 W 3-2Navy 3/5 W 12-1Charlotte 3/7 W 3-2Charlotte 3/8 W 3-2Charlotte 3/9 W 11-5#25 UNC-Greensboro 3/11 W 12-5#25 UNC-Greensboro 3/12 W 14-6William & Mary 3/19 W 6-0Duke 3/21 W 13-1Duke 3/22 W 9-2Duke 3/23 W 6-0James Madison 3/25 W 13-3Maryland 3/28 W 6-0Maryland 3/29 W 4-2#16 Richmond 4/1 W 11-4Liberty 4/2 W 3-0#12 Miami 4/11 L 6-1#12 Miami 4/12 L 10-4#12 Miami 4/13 W 17-2#14 N.C. State 4/19 L 7-1#14 N.C. State 4/19 L 3-2#14 N.C. State 4/20 W 8-3George Mason 4/22 L 4-3
VIRGINIA VS. TOP-25 TEAMS: Virginia stands 6-14 against Top-25 teams ranked in the Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball or Baseball Weekly polls this season. UVa has had 14 of its 17 losses come at the hands of a ranked opponent, with 10 of those 14 losses coming to Top-25 teams on the road. Here is a look at Virginia vs. the Top-25:
Opponent Ranking Date Result/Score@ Auburn #21 2/14 L, 14-13@ Auburn #21 2/15 L, 5-3@ Auburn #21 2/16 L, 7-5@ Richmond #12 3/3 L, 2-1@ Richmond #12 3/3 L, 2-1UNC-Greensboro #25 3/11 W, 12-5UNC-Greensboro #25 3/12 W, 14-6@ Florida State #4 3/14 L, 9-1@ Florida State #4 3/15 L, 4-0@ Florida State #4 3/16 L, 5-4 (12)Richmond #16 4/1 W, 11-4@ Clemson #20 4/4 L, 9-4@ Clemson #20 4/5 W, 4-1@ Clemson #20 4/6 L, 9-2Miami #12 4/11 L, 6-1Miami #12 4/12 L, 10-4Miami #12 4/13 W, 17-2N.C. State #14 4/19 L, 7-1N.C. State #14 4/19 L, 3-2N.C. State #14 4/20 W, 8-3
VIRGINIA VS. IN-STATE TEAMS: UVa stands 10-5 against teams from within the Commonwealth of Virginia. UVa was 8-8 against in-state opponents last season (2002). Here is a look at Virginia vs. in-state teams this year:
Opponent Date Result Score@ Liberty 2/24 W 15-5@ Radford 3/2 W 11-0@ #12 Richmond 3/3 L 2-1@ #12 Richmond 3/3 L 2-1James Madison 3/4 W 3-2William & Mary 3/19 W 6-0James Madison 3/25 W 13-3@ James Madison 3/26 W 5-4#16 Richmond 4/1 W 11-4Liberty 4/2 W 3-0Old Dominion 4/15 W 8-3@ Virginia Tech 4/16 L 5-3George Mason 4/22 L 4-3Virginia Tech 4/23 W 10-7@ VCU 4/29 L 5-3
VIRGINIA EXCEEDS ITS FINAL SEASON WIN TOTALS FROM LAST TWO YEARS: Following its 6-4 victory over Wake Forest on April 27th, Virginia recorded its 26th victory of the year which exceeds its final season wins total of 25 from the last two years after the Cavaliers finished 25-32 in 2002 and 25-31 in 2001. The mark of 26 wins also tied Virginia’s final season win total of 26 from the 2000 season when the Cavaliers finished 26-31-1.
PERFECT JOE: Virginia’s Joe Koshansky remained perfect on the mound as a pitcher following his seventh win of the season by increasing his unblemished record to 7-0 this season after he pitched UVa to a 6-4 victory over Wake Forest on April 27. Koshansky has faced some tough opponents this year en route to his 7-0 mark after picking up wins over nationally ranked Miami, N.C. State and UNC-Greensboro.
CAVALIERS PLAYED NINE GAMES IN ELEVEN DAYS DURING PRE-FINALS STRETCH: Beginning with its three-game series with N.C. State on April 19-20, Virginia started a MLB-type schedule with a total of nine games in 11 days from April 19-29. The 11 games were schedule before the Cavaliers had a week off from competition for final examinations. On one of the two days UVa did not actually playing a game, it was on the road traveling to Winston-Salem, N.C. for an ACC-series against Wake Forest. After Virginia’s three contests with NCSU (April 19-20), the Cavaliers hosted George Mason on April 22 before they traveled to Salem, Va. to face Virginia Tech on April 23 on a neutral field. Following the VT contest, Virginia traveled to Winston-Salem on April 24th to begin its three-games series against the Demon Deacons on April 25-27. After playing in the WFU series, Virginia closed out the stretch with another road game today in Richmond, Va. on April 29th against VCU. The Cavaliers finished the stretch with a record of 4-5 record.
VIRGINIA DEFEATS WAKE FOREST IN ACC SERIES IN WINSTON-SALEM FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 1993: For the first in a decade (since the 1993 season), Virginia defeated Wake Forest in an ACC series in Winston-Salem, N.C. Following UVa’s 2-1 series win over Wake Forest on April 25-27, 2003, the last time the Cavaliers had defeated the Demon Deacons in a three-games series at Gene Hooks Stadium was back on April 2-4, 1993, a span of ten years.
VIRGINIA LOSES AT HOME FOR THE FIRST TIME TO A NON-RANKED OPPONENT: Following its 4-3 loss at home to George Mason on April 22, Virginia lost for the first time this season in Charlottesville to a non-ranked opponent. Prior to the home loss to GMU, UVa had dropped a pair of home contests to the nationally ranked Miami Hurricanes and the N.C. State Wolfpack. Virginia’s loss to George Mason also marked the first time the Cavaliers had lost a home game in 2003 to an in-state opponent.
VIRGINIA’S RECORD IN SERIES COMPETITIONS: UVa is 6-6-1 in series competitions (two or three-game series) against its opponents this season. UVa has defeated Duke (3-0), Charlotte (3-0), James Madison (3-0), Maryland (2-0), UNC-Greensboro (2-0) and Wake Forest (2-1), and has lost to Auburn (3-0), Florida State (3-0), Miami (2-1) N.C. State (2-1), Richmond (2-1) and Clemson (2-1). The Cavaliers are 1-1 against Virginia Tech.
VIRGINIA TURNS TRIPLE-PLAY AGAINST N.C. STATE: On April 19, 2003 in a contest against the #14 ranked N.C. State Wolfpack, Virginia turned a triple play. After back-to-back hits by NCSU’s Justin Riley (single) and Colt Morton (double) to put baserunners on second and third base with no outs, the Wolfpack’s David Hicks hit a grounder to UVa pitcher Andrew Dobies. Dobies threw Hicks out at first base before Morton was tagged out at second base in an effort to return to the bag and then Riley was thrown out at home plate with a tag as he was trying to score a run.
VIRGINIA LOSES ITS FIRST GAME OF THE YEAR TO A NON-RANKED OPPONENT IN BASEBALL AMERICA, COLLEGIATE BASEBALL OR BASEBALL WEEKLY POLL: When Virginia lost a 5-3 decision to the Virginia Tech Hokies on April 16th, 2003 in Blacksburg, Va., it marked the first time all season that UVa lost a game to an opponent that was not ranked in the Top-25 in either the Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball or Baseball Weekly polls. Prior to the UVa/VT contest, all 12 of Virginia’s losses were in games against ranked opponents, including 10 games that were on the road against ranked teams.
DENNIS WOMACK APPROACHING #600/#1200: On March 11th, 2000, Dennis Womack coached in his 1,000th career game as a head baseball coach when Virginia faced Eastern Michigan. Four days later (March 15th), Womack recorded his 500th career victory as a head coach when UVa defeated Princeton by the score of 5-2. Just over three years later, Womack is now closing in on 600 career wins and 1,200 games coached. Womack needs just 13 victories to reach 600 wins for his career and needs to coach just ten more games to reach 1,200 for his career. Heading into UVa’s three-game series with Wake Forest (April 25-27), Womack’s overall coaching record now stands at 590-598-7 through 1195 games.
VIRGINIA STANDS 11-3 AGAINST TEAMS FROM NORTH CAROLINA: Virginia stands 11-3 overall against teams from the state of North Carolina. UVa posted a three-game sweep over Duke on March 21-23 (13-1, 9-2, 6-0) and also swept Charlotte on March 7-9 (3-2, 3-2, 11-5) and UNC-Greensboro on March 11-12 (12-5, 14-6) before winning two of three against Wake Forest, (1-2, 13-2, 6-4). Two of the Cavaliers’ three losses to a team from the state of North Carolina came when N.C. State won two games against Virginia on April 19-20. UVa hopes its good fortunes can continue against teams from North Carolina when Virginia faces remaining ACC opponent North Carolina on May 15-17.
BUILD IT AND THEY WILL COME: On April 12, 2003 in a game against the #12 Miami Hurricanes, Virginia set a new facility single game attendance record at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium when 1,955 spectators turned out to watch the contest. The previous facility record was 1,665 for a game with #5 Wake Forest on April 13, 2002.
CAVALIERS BLOWOUT HURRICANES IN GAME THREE: Despite having its 16-game home winning streak snapped by the #12 Miami Hurricanes after back-to-back losses (6-1 and 10-4) on April 11th and 12th, Virginia posted its largest margin of victory this season over one the best teams it has faced this year by blowing out Miami 17-2 in just seven innings in the final contest of a three-game series. UVa’s 17 runs in seven innings of play was just one run short of the total amount of runs Miami scored in three games combined (18 runs) through a total of 25 innings of play. Virginia outscored Miami 22-18 for the series despite losing two out of the three games.
VIRGINIA WAS THE ACC’S LAST LONE UNBEATEN TEAM AT HOME: Heading into its three-game non-conference series with the Miami Hurricanes (April 11-13), Virginia was the ACC’s lone unbeaten team at home with a perfect 16-0 record at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium. However, Miami defeated Virginia for the first time all season in Charlottesville by the score of 6-1 on Friday, April 11.
VIRGINIA HANDS CLEMSON ITS FIRST HOME LOSS OF 2003: Virginia became the ACC’s lone unbeaten team at home on April 5th following UVa’s 4-1 victory over the Clemson Tigers in Clemson, S.C. Prior to the game, Clemson entered the contest with a perfect 16-0 at home and had just defeated Virginia by the score of 9-4 on day early on its home field. UVa, which also held a 16-0 record at home before the start of the contest, put an end to the Tigers’ home-winning streak by pulling out a three-run road victory.
VIRGINIA’S 10-GAME WINNING STREAK COMES TO A HALT: With its 9-4 loss to the Clemson Tigers in Clemson, S.C. on April 4th, Virginia had its 10-game win streak come to and end. The winning streak was UVa’s longest since the Cavaliers posted 10 consecutive wins all the way back in the 1947 season.
VIRGINIA RECORDS FIFTH SHUTOUT VICTORY OF THE SEASON: With its 3-0 shutout victory over Liberty on April 2nd, Virginia recorded its fifth shutout victory of the season. Here is a look at all of UVa’s wins and losses by shutout:
Opponent Date Result ScoreLiberty 4/2 W 3-0Maryland 3/28 W 6-0Duke 3/23 W 6-0William & Mary 3/19 W 6-0@ Florida State 3/15 L 4-0@Radford 3/2 W 11-0
MARCH MADNESS: Virginia was red-hot in the month of March. The Cavaliers posted a record of 16-5 overall, including a perfect 14-0 record at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium.
JEFF KAMRATH NAMED ACC PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Virginia’s Jeff Kamrath was named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Pitcher of the Week. Kamrath, a junior right-hander, pitched the third complete game of his career and his second complete game shutout against Maryland when he went 9.0 scoreless innings with 11 strikeouts in UVa’s 6-0 victory on March 28, 2003. Kamrath also pitched a complete game shutout against Maryland last year on April 5, 2002 in College Park, Md., in a game Virginia won 5-0. Kamrath was joined on the conference honor list by N.C. State’s Jeremy Dutton who was named ACC Player of the Week. For Kamrath, it was the second time in his career he was named the ACC Pitcher of the Week after also being selected on April 29, 2002.
UVA EXCEEDS ITS ENTIRE HOME WIN TOTALS FROM LAST YEAR A THIRD OF THE WAY THROUGH THE SEASON IN 2003: Last year (2002), Virginia finished 11-14 overall at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium for the entire season. Just a third of the way through its 2003 season, UVa already eclipsed its entire home win total from last season. With its 13-3 victory over James Madison on March 25th, the win gave the Cavaliers their 12th home win before the month of March even ended.GILLISPIE’S FIRST HOME RUN WAS GRAND!: Entering Virginia’s game with James Madison on March 25, UVa left fielder Paul Gillispie had never hit a collegiate home run at Virginia. But in the bottom of the sixth inning, all of that changed. With the bases loaded, Gillispie sent a ball screaming over the left field wall at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium for a grand slam. Gillispie’s grand slam, his first ever home run as a Cavalier, was the first hit by a Virginia player since Mark Reynolds on April 22, 2002 in Fairfax, Va. in UVa’s 14-5 victory over George Mason.
VIRGINIA DEFEATS DUKE 28-3 FOR THE SERIES!: After seeing the combined score for Virginia’s three-game series sweep against the Duke Blue Devils in baseball, one might have thought it was a football score. UVa outscored Duke 28-3 en route to sweeping the Blue Devils three games to none in a three-game ACC series at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Stadium on March 21-23. The Cavaliers defeated the Blue Devils 13-1 on Friday March 21st, 9-2 on Saturday March 22nd and shut out Duke 6-0 on Sunday, March 23rd. The three-game ACC series sweep was Virginia’s first since March 22-24, 2002 when UVa swept Duke 3-0 in Durham, N.C. Despite being shutout in the final game of the series, Duke’s 6-0 loss was the closest the Blue Devils finished to Virginia out of all three games in the series.
DOBIES PITCHES UVA’S FIRST COMPLETE GAME SHUTOUT OF 2003: Virginia LHP Andrew Dobies pitched UVa’s first complete game shutout of the 2003 season on March 19th when he guided Virginia to a 6-0 shutout victory over William & Mary at Davenport Field at the UVa Baseball Field. Dobies picked up his fourth win of the year after going 9.0 innings and scattered six hits with a game-high eight strikeouts. Dobies’ accomplishment marked the first time a UVa pitcher had pitched a complete game shutout since Jeff Kamrath on April 5, 2002 in College Park, Md.
REYNOLDS’ HOME RUN CLEARS “BLUE MONSTER” IN CENTER FIELD: Stepping onto the playing field and looking straight ahead to deep center field at the UVa Baseball Stadium, you can’t help but to see the towering wall nicknamed the “Blue Monster” at Davenport Field. The wall itself stands 408 feet away from home plate, but it also projects itself about 35 feet into the sky as well. The thought of a home run ever clearing the wall was thought to be a “long shot,” and that’s exactly what Mark Reynolds’ hit could be describe as after he blasted a solo shot clean over the “Blue Monster.” Reynolds’ home run was the first HR to ever clear the center field wall in the short history of the new ballpark. It may be a while until that achievement is ever accomplished again.
KAMRATH & KOSHANSKY HELP CAVALIERS SWEEP PAST TERRAPINS: Virginia received a pair of top-notch performances out of RHP Jeff Kamrath and 1B Joe Koshansky in UVa’s two wins over Maryland on March 28-29. In Virginia’s 6-0 over Maryland on March 28, Jeff Kamrath pitched a complete game shutout and struck out 11 batters to lift the Cavaliers to victory. In UVa’s 4-2 win over Maryland on March 29, Koshansky went 3-for-4 at the plate including hitting his game-winning, two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning that broke open a 2-2 tie ballgame. Both players were pivotal in Virginia’s 2-0 sweep.
#4 FLORIDA STATE SWEEPS VIRGINIA IN CAVALIERS’ ACC-OPENING SERIES: Virginia lost all three games of its ACC-opening series to the #4 ranked Florida State Seminoles in Tallahassee, Fla. on March 14-16. UVa fell 9-1 on March 14th, 4-0 on March 15th and 5-4 in 12 innings on March 16th. All three games were played at FSU’s Dick Howser Stadium.
CAVALIERS SWEEP #25 SPARTANS IN TWO-GAME SERIES: Virginia picked up two wins over the #25 ranked UNC Greensboro Spartans on March 11th (12-5) and 12th (14-6) at the UVa Baseball Stadium. The two victories helped Virginia improve its win streak to seven games and kept the Cavaliers a perfect 7-0 at home.
VIRGINIA RECORDS FIRST WIN OF THE SEASON OVER A TOP 25 TEAM: With its 12-5 victory over #25 UNC-Greensboro on March 11th, Virginia recorded its first win over a ranked opponent this season. Prior to UVa’s win over UNCG, the Cavaliers were 0-5 against ranked teams (three games vs. #20 Auburn and two contests vs. #12 Richmond) and lost all five games by a combined seven runs. All five contests were decided by two runs or less.
CHRIS SWEET & JOE KOSHANSKY LEAD VIRGINIA PAST NAVY, 12-1: Virginia’s Chris Sweet went 4-for-5 at the plate with three RBI’s and scored two runs and starting LHP Joe Koshansky pitched 6.0 innings and allowed only one unearned run with just three hits to go along with three strikeouts as UVa defeated Navy 12-1.
VIRGINIA DEFEATS JAMES MADISON IN UVA’S HOME-OPENER: Virginia snapped a six-game losing streak to the James Madison Dukes when UVa recorded a 3-2 decision in the Cavaliers’ home-opener over the Dukes. Virginia turned a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead in the fourth inning and held on for the win. The victory marked the 21st time UVa has posted a win in its last 24 home openers.
VIRGINIA LOST FIVE GAMES BY A COMBINED SEVEN RUNS TO THE FIRST FIVE RANKED OPPONENTS IT PLAYED: Virginia lost the first five games it played against ranked opponents this year by a combined seven runs. Virginia lost 14-13, 5-3 and 7-5 to #20 Auburn and dropped a pair of 2-1 decisions to #12 Richmond. All five contests were played on the road.
VIRGINIA DROPS A PAIR OF 2-1 DECISIONS TO #12 RICHMOND IN DOUBLEHEADER: Close, but no cigar. That was the case in Virginia’s doubleheader with #12 Richmond on March 3rd. The Cavaliers dropped a pair of 2-1 decisions to the Spiders on the road at UR’s Pitt Field.
UVA RECORDS FIRST SHUTOUT OF 2003 SEASON WITH 11-0 WIN OVER RADFORD: Virginia recorded its first shutout of the 2003 season when the Cavaliers posted an 11-0 shutout victory over the Radford Highlanders. The win marked the first time UVa recorded back-to-back wins this season. The victory was also Virginia’s second on the road this year.
VIRGINIA DEFEATS LIBERTY FOR FIRST VICTORY OF THE SEASON/FIRST ROAD WIN: With its 15-5 victory over Liberty, Virginia chalked-up its first win of the 2003 season. The victory also marked UVa’s first road win of the year. The Cavaliers’ starting pitcher Andrew Dobies got the win and led the way on the mound for Virginia while pitching 7.0 innings with two strikeouts and allowed only two earned runs. UVa’s Matt Street paced the offense by going 3-for-4 at the plate with three runs and an RBI.
UVA IN HOME OPENERS: Over the past 24 seasons, Virginia stands 21-1-2 (.916) all-time in home-openers, including a 20-1-2 (.913) mark all-time under current UVa head coach Dennis Womack. The Cavaliers have not lost a home-opener since a 6-2 setback to VCU back on March 1, 1989. Virginia has either won or tied its home opener the past 14 consecutive seasons.
ZIMMERMAN COMES OUT SWINGING!: Virginia’s first-year starting third baseman Ryan Zimmerman started his career as a Cavaliers with a bang! Zimmerman went a perfect 3-for-3 in his first three trips to the plate against Auburn and recorded two doubles and a single in those at-bats. He recorded a single in his first at-bat, hit a double in his second at-bat, and then hit a RBI-double in his third at-bat. Zimmerman finished 3-for-5 at the plate with two runs and one RBI for the game.
JORDAN GHRIST HITS VIRGINIA’S FIRST HOME RUN OF THE SEASON: UVa outfielder Jordan Ghrist made his first collegiate start count when he started in left field on February 15th at Auburn and finished 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and one run. One of Ghrist’s two hits was a home run, the first by a Virginia player for the 2003 season.
VIRGINIA DROPS SEASON-OPENING SERIES AT AUBURN: The Virginia baseball lost three games by a combined five runs to the #20 Auburn Tigers in UVa’s season-opening weekend series at Auburn on February 14-16. Auburn defeated Virginia 14-13 in game one, 5-3 in the second game and 7-5 in the final contest of the three-game weekend series. UVa had a lead in two of the contests and was tied in another, but could not come away with a win. Virginia led Auburn 10-1 in the fourth inning of game one, was tied at 3-3 in the seventh inning of game two, and led 5-1 in the fifth inning of game three before the Tigers mounted a comeback in each contest.
UVA WAS THE SECOND TEAM FROM THE STATE OF VIRGINIA TO FACE AUBURN THIS SEASON: Following its three-game weekend series at Auburn (Feb. 14-16), UVa became the second school from the state if Virginia to face the Auburn Tigers in the opening weeks of the 2003 season. Auburn also hosted the Virginia Commonwealth Rams on February 7-9. Auburn won the series with VCU (2-1) and against Virginia (3-0).
VIRGINIA PICKED TO FINISH SEVENTH IN ACC COACHES POLL: The University of Virginia baseball team was picked to finish seventh in the 2003 Atlantic Coast Conference Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll. UVa received a total of 29 points in the poll to finish in front of both the Duke Blue Devils and the Maryland Terrapins. The ACC’s nine head coaches selected the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets as the top pick to win the conference championship in 2003 with six first place votes and a total of 77 points in the poll. Georgia Tech return 22 of the 28 letterwinner from its 2002 squad that finished the season with a 52-16 record, including a 14-9 league mark and a trip to the NCAA College World Series. Just behind the Yellow Jackets in the poll were the Florida State Seminoles who finished a close second place with 73 points and two first place votes after finishing the 2002 season as the regular season and ACC Tournament Champions. The Wake Forest Demon Deacons finished in third place with 65 points and one first place vote. Wake Forest finished last season with a 47-13-1 overall record and was the second seed at the ACC Tournament with a 17-6 ACC record. The Clemson Tigers were picked to finish in fourth place with 54 points, while the North Carolina Tar Heels placed fifth in the balloting with 41 points. North Carolina was followed by the N.C. State Wolfpack who finished with 30 points good for sixth place in the poll, just one more point than Virginia with 29 points in seventh. Duke was picked to finish in eighth place with 19 points and Maryland rounded out the poll in ninth place with 17 points.
2003 ACC Coaches Preseason Predicted Order of Finish:
Place School Points 2002 Record/Finish1. Georgia Tech (6) 77 52-16, 14-9 ACC2. Florida State (2) 73 60-14, 18-6 ACC3. Wake Forest (1) 65 47-13-1, 17-6 ACC4. Clemson 54 54-17, 16-8 ACC5. North Carolina 41 43-21, 17-7 ACC6. N.C. State 30 33-26, 7-17 ACC7. VIRGINIA 29 25-32, 8-16 ACC8. Duke 19 24-34, 4-20 ACC9. Maryland 17 34-23, 6-18 ACC
HANSARD, STARR AND SWEET NAMED TRI-CAPTAINS: University of Virginia head baseball coach Dennis Womack has announced that three fourth-year players (Greg Hansard, Shooter Starr and Chris Sweet) have been selected as team captains and will serve as the tri-captains for the 2003 UVa baseball team. “The baseball captains at Virginia are chosen by their teammate, by their peers, and the coaching staff could not be happier with the three young men that were chosen,” said Womack. “These are three quality young men, terrific young men, who will proved the kind leadership that is needed for our program.”
RETURNING TRIO WITH HONORS: Virginia returns a trio of players who were honored or recognized for their stellar play from the 2002 season. Tri-captain CF Chris Sweet was a 2002 Major League Baseball Draft Pick, starting RHP Jeff Kamrath was a 2002 Second Team All-ACC selection, and SS Mark Reynolds was named a 2002 Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American.
The last time Virginia …Won 10 or more consecutive games: March 19 – April 2, 2003 (10)Won 10 consecutive home games: March 4 – March 22, 2003Was 10 games over .500: April 15, 2003 (22-12)Won 15 or more consecutive home games: March 4 – April 2, 2003 (16)Lost 5 or more consecutive games: May 15 – May 23, 2002 (6)Scored 20 or more runs in a game: 25 @ North Carolina A&T – March 11, 2002Had 20 or more hits in a game: 23 vs. Duke – March 21, 2003Hit consecutive home runs: Robert Word and Mark Reynolds@ James Madison – April 2, 2002Hit three consecutive home runs: Jon Benick, Mark Rueffertand Dan Street @ Virginia Tech – April 18, 2001Turned a triple play: vs. N.C. State – April 19, 2003Shutout consecutive opponents: vs. Seton Hall (8-0 and 4-0) – March 2, 1996 (DH)Was shut out: @ Florida State (4-0) – March 15, 2003Was shut out in two consecutive games: @ ODU (1-0) – Feb. 24, 1999and vs. Seton Hall (8-0) – Feb. 27, 1999Swept an ACC doubleheader: vs. Maryland – May 10, 1997Was swept in an ACC doubleheader: vs. N.C. State – April 19, 2003Swept an ACC series at home: vs. Maryland (2)