No. 17 Virginia Wins ACC Opener, Runs Win Streak to 13 Games

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – No. 17 Virginia (13-0, 1-0 ACC) remained unbeaten with a 7-3, series opening win over No. 14 North Carolina (11-4, 0-1 ACC) on Friday (March 10) at Boshamer Stadium. The Cavaliers are 13-0 to start the year for the fourth time in program history.

After Friday’s results, Virginia remains the only undefeated team remaining in DI college baseball.

UVA scored the first six runs of the game in the first two innings and knocked out UNC starting pitcher Max Carlson in the second inning. The Cavalier bullpen combination of Angelo Tonas and Jake Berry did not allow an earned run over the final five innings. Berry struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth and recorded his second, three-inning save of the season.

Jake Gelof became the sixth member of UVA’s 30-home run club with a solo shot to right center in the sixth inning. He’s the first Cavalier to hit 30 home runs in a career since Mark Reynolds hit 35 from 2002-04.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Virginia quickly captured the lead, just three batters into the game on an on RBI single off the bat of Gelof. It marked the third-straight game UVA has scored in the first inning.

• The Cavaliers sent 10 batters to the plate in the top of the second and plated five runs on five hits. Justin Rubin, who made a sliding, over the shoulder catch in the inning prior, roped a double down the left field line that scored two runs, extending the game to 3-0.

• Playing in his first ACC contest, Ethan O’Donnell made it 6-0 with a three-run home run to left field, his third homer of the season.

• In the top of the sixth, Gelof capped the UVA scoring with his team-leading, fifth home run of the season.

• The Tar Heels, who ranked eighth in the country in home runs coming into the contest, got on the scoreboard with a two-run homer by Jackson Van De Brake in the bottom of the second. North Carolina added an unearned run in the seventh inning to close the UVA lead back to four runs.
• Cavalier pitchers escaped two pivotal moments in the contest, first in the fifth inning. The first three Tar Heel batters of the inning reached base to load the bases. Starting pitcher Nick Parker struck the next two batters out and induced an inning-ending fly out to center to come out of unscathed.
• The Heels threatened again in the fifth with runners on the corners and no outs. Tonas came on an got a ground out and fanned the final two batters of the inning to end the threat.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• Virginia snapped North Carolina’s seven-game win streak.
• The Cavaliers have now won five-straight games against North Carolina, the most since winning five in-a-row from 2015-16. UVA has not won six consecutive games against UNC since 1913-15.
• Virginia scored in the first inning for the eighth time in 13 games and now has plated a total of 25 runs in the first inning this season, the most of any other frame.
• The five-run second inning was the eighth time UVA has scored five or more runs in a single inning this season.
• Jake Berry pitched 3.0 innings and struck out four batters on Friday. He has not allowed an earned run in 13.2 innings pitched this season.
• Shortstop Griff O’Ferrall went 3-for-5 with two runs scored. All three of his hits were singles and came in his first three at bats.
• The Cavaliers also received multi-hit efforts from Gelof (2-for-5), Casey Saucke (2-for-4) and Ethan Anderson (2-for-5).

UP NEXT

With inclement weather in the forecast, the two teams are scheduled to play a doubleheader on Saturday (March 11) beginning at 1 p.m. The second game of the doubleheader will begin 45 minutes after the conclusion of game one.