Virginia Baseball Tops Delaware for 10th Consecutive Win
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March 2, 2007
CHARLOTTESVILLE – Tyler Cannon (Pigeon Forge, Tenn.) went 2-for-4 and drove in a career-high six runs to lead the Virginia baseball team to a 11-2 win over Delaware Friday afternoon at Davenport Field. The win was the 10th consecutive victory for the Cavaliers, who improve to 12-1 on the season. The Blue Hens fall to 0-4 with the loss.
“I liked how we were able to put pressure on them early with our offense,” head coach Brian O’Connor said. “We did the little things in terms of bunting and hitting behind runners to manufacture runs. Today, those things led to some big innings for us.”
Cannon led the Cavalier offense, tripling his career RBI total in the process. David Adams (Margate, Fla.), Brandon Guyer (Herndon, Va.), and Mike Mitchell (Chesapeake, Va.) also went 2-for-4 for the Cavaliers, while Beau Seabury (Mount Vernon, Wash.) went 2-for-3.
Sean Doolittle (Tabernacle, N.J.) picked up his fourth win of the season (4-0), allowing two runs on four hits in six innings, striking out nine in the process. Robert Poutier (Yorktown, Va.) and Jeff Lorick (Duluth, Ga.) combined for three innings of shutout relief.
Billy Harris (0-1) took the loss for Delaware, allowing eight runs on eight hits in three-plus innings of work.
The Cavaliers current 10-game win streak marks the club’s longest win streak since a 11-game win streak in March of 2005.
Virginia opened up a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Guyer, Seabury, and Patrick Wingfield (Winchester, Va.) opened the inning with singles to load the bases. Cannon’s double down the left field line scored Guyer and Seabury. Mitchell’s sacrifice bunt scored Wingfield and Greg Miclat (Concord, N.C.) drove in Cannon with an RBI single.
The lead was extended to 6-0 in the third inning. Seabury hit a one-out single and reached second on a wild pitch. Wingfield reached and Seabury moved to third on an error. Cannon’s RBI ground out scored Seabury and Mitchell singled to score Wingfield.
Delaware scored a run in the top of the fourth to cut the lead to 6-1. It also snapped Doolittle’s 19-inning shutout streak. Brandon Manchaca walked and reached second on a wild pitch. Adam Tsakonas’ RBI single drove him in for the Blue Hens’ first run.
Virginia pushed the lead to 8-1 after four innings of play. Adams walked and Guyer was hit by a pitch to open the inning. A wild pitch moved both runners in to scoring position. With one out, Wingfield was intentionally walked to load the bases, and Cannon then walked to force in a run. Guyer later scored on a RBI groundout by Mitchell.
Delaware added a run in the top of the fifth. Dan Richardson led off the inning with a hit-by-pitch and eventually scored on Alex Buccholz’s two-out double.
Virginia scored the final three runs of the contest in the bottom of the fifth. Doolittle led off with a walk and reached second on a wild pitch. He scored on Adams’ double down the right field line. Guyer’s single and Seabury’s hit-by-pitch loaded the bases. Cannon then collected his final two RBI of the game with a single to right that scored Adams and Guyer.
The Cavaliers and Blue Hens will meet again Saturday for game two of the weekend series. First pitch at Davenport Field is set for 1 p.m.