Cavalier Lead Slips Away in Late Innings

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Miami (9-5, 2-0 ACC) clinched the series with a 16-12, come-from-behind victory over No. 13 Virginia (12-3, 0-2 ACC) on Saturday (March 9) at Alex Rodriguez Park. The Hurricanes erased a nine-run deficit and scored 13 runs in its final two turns at the plate.

Virginia scored all 12 of its runs in the first five innings and owned a 12-3 advantage after six innings. Harrison Didawick homered in back-to-back frames beginning in the third and drove in a career-high five runs in the contest. It marked the fourth-straight game he’s hit a home run and has a team-best eight long balls on the year.

UVA starting pitcher Evan Blanco left the game as the pitcher of record after he allowed three runs in five innings of work. He fanned three of the first six batters he faced and finished with six strikeouts in a no-decision.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Virginia Baseball (@uvabaseball)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After scoring an unearned run in the first inning, the Cavaliers racked up six hits and scored three runs in the third inning, the first on an RBI single by Henry Ford and two more on Didawick’s first homer of the night.

• The Hurricanes made it a one-run game in their half of the third, with three consecutive two-out RBI hits. Blanco induced an inning-ending ground ball with the bases loaded to keep UVA in front 4-3.
• Virginia scored the next eight runs, four in the fourth and four in the fifth. Didawick delivered the big blow in the fourth with a three-run homer to left center.

• Ford capped UVA’s four-run rally in the fifth with a two-run shot, his sixth homer of the year to put UVA up 12-3. Ford went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBI on the night.
• The Cavaliers nearly made it a 10-run game in the top of the seventh which would have put them in position for the ACC’s 10-run rule to be invoked but they left two runners in scoring position.
• Miami erupted for 13 runs in its final two at bats and took the lead for good in the eighth on a grand slam by Blake Cyr. The final 10 Hurricane runs were scored with two outs.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• Virginia scored eight of its 12 runs with two outs while Miami scored 13 of its 16 runs with two outs.
• Every batter in the Virginia starting lineup had a hit including multi-hit efforts by Bobby Whalen (4-for-6), Ford (3-for-4), Didawick (2-for-5), Henry Godbout (2-for-4) and Ethan Anderson (2-for-5).
• Casey Saucke went 1-for-3 with two RBIs and extended his reached base streak to 23 games.
• Godbout returned to the lineup and extended his hit streak to 13 games.
• The Cavaliers have dropped eight-straight road games against Miami.

UP NEXT

The series finale between Virginia and Miami is set for Sunday, March 10 at 1 p.m. The Cavaliers will have RHP Jay Woolfolk (1-0) on the mound and he will be opposed by Hurricane lefty Herick Hernandez (2-1).