Virginia Hosts Kansas State in Super Regional

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia (44-15) will engage in a best-of-three series against Kansas State (35-24) beginning Friday (June 7) at Disharoon Park. The winner will advance to the College World Series. First pitch for Friday’s Super Regional opener is slated for 7 p.m. and the contest will air live on ESPN2.

Gates will open 90 minutes prior to each game to accommodate expected large crowds.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Watch: ESPN2 (Fri.) | ESPNU (Sat./Sun.)
Listen: WINA – 98.9 FM/1070 AM/WINA.com/Virginia Sports App
Live Stats: VirginiaSports.com

PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS

Friday – 7 p.m.
Kansas State: LHP Owen Boerema (6-3, 5.07 ERA, 92.1 IP, 45 BB, 105 SO)
Virginia: LHP Evan Blanco (7-3, 3.57 ERA, 85.2 IP, 24 BB, 86 SO)

Saturday – 3 p.m.
Virginia: RHP Jay Woolfolk (3-1, 6.15 ERA, 52.2 IP, 35 BB, 57 SO)
Kansas State: RHP Jackson Wentworth (6-3, 5.07 ERA, 81.0 IP, 25 BB, 110 SO)

Sunday – 3 p.m. (if necessary)
Virginia: TBA
Kansas State: TBA

PARKING INFORMATION

LEADING OFF

• Virginia is making its 21st NCAA Tournament appearances, 18 have come in Brian O’Connor’s tenure (2004-present).
• The Cavaliers are one of five teams in this year’s field that have hosted NCAA Regionals in 2023 and 2024 (Clemson, Arkansas, Kentucky, Okla. St.). It marks the first time since the 2013 and 2014 (National Runner-Up) seasons that the Cavaliers have hosted a regional in back-to-back years.
•  The Cavaliers have hosted NCAA Regionals 11 times in the 20 possible NCAA Tournaments in the O’Connor era (2004-present)
• Virginia is one of 18 teams in the country with 41 or more wins. Only Clemson and North Carolina have more wins among ACC schools with 42.
• UVA boasts one of the nation’s top offenses, batting .341 as a team, the second highest average in the country. The Cavaliers rank in the top-10 in eight offensive categories.
• The Cavaliers are 61-41 in the NCAA Tournament under Brian O’Connor. The 61 NCAA Tournament wins are the fourth most ever in ACC history and the most of any active ACC coach.

VIRGINIA THE PROGRAM

• Virginia has reached the 40-win plateau for the 14th time in program history, 13 of which have come under head coach Brian O’Connor’s direction.
• UVA has been to two of the last three College World Series in Omaha. Stanford (3x), Tennessee and Texas are the only other schools that can make that claim.
• All six of UVA’s College World Series appearances have been in the last 15 years, the most in the ACC and the tied for the second-most of any college baseball program. Only Florida (8 CWS appearances) has more in that span.
• The Cavaliers have won 55 NCAA Tournament games since 2009, the most of any ACC school and the fifth-most in the country.
• Virginia has racked up 880 wins since Brian O’Connor’s first year in Charlottesville in 2004. The 880 wins are the fourth most of any college baseball program in that span.
• Including a 50-win campaign in 2023, the Cavaliers have posted five, 50-win seasons since 2010, tied for the second most of any school in the country.
• Since 2010, Virginia has won 259 ACC games, the most of any team in the conference.
• In 21 seasons at UVA, O’Connor has coached an astounding 31 MLB players, 10 of which played on the 2015 National Championship team. A total of 12 Cavaliers were in the big leagues last season including Josh Sborz who struck out the final batter of the 2023 World Series, clinching the Texas Rangers first ever World Championship.
• Including Kyle Teel last season (14th overall – Red Sox), Virginia has produced 10 first round draft picks, the most of any ACC program and the third-most of any program in college baseball.

TRENDING

• Virginia swept through the regional round for the second-straight season and the seventh time in program history. The Cavaliers have advanced to the College World Series five times when going 3-0 in the regional round.
• The Cavaliers have won five-straight postseason games at Disharoon Park dating back to last season.
• UVA needs one more win to reach 30 home wins for the season. The Cavaliers won a program record 37 games at Disharoon Park last season and have won 30 or more games at home eight times, all in the O’Connor era. There are seven teams nationally with 30 or more home wins this season.
• One more win would clinch UVA’s ninth 45-win season in program history. Virginia has not had back-to-back 45-win seasons since 2013 & 2014.
• Virginia has lost back-to-back games once this season, the first two games of an ACC series at Miami.

SUPER REGIONAL TIES

• UVA’s Griff O’Ferrall and Jay Woolfolk were teammates with Kansas State’s Kaelen Culpepper and Tyson Neighbors on the 2023 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team.
• Kansas State head coach Pete Hughes was the head coach at Virginia Tech from 2007-13. UVA was 14-7 against Virginia Tech under Hughes’ tenure, including a 7-2 mark at Disharoon Park.

FIRST TIME OPPONENT

• Virginia and Kansas State will meet for the first time. It marks the first time UVA will play a Big 12 opponent since 2021 when it played Texas in the College World Series.
• The Cavaliers are 14-15 all-time against current members of the Big 12.

ON THE MOUND

• Virginia had six quality starts on the season going into Regional Play (four by Evan Blanco). Both Blanco (6.0 IP, 3 ER) and Woolfolk (8.0 IP, 2 ER) turned in quality starts last weekend in the Charlottesville Regional. It was the first time this season UVA starters posted back-to-back quality starts and the first time since the 2023 Super Regionals when Connelly Early (7.0 IP, 0 ER) and Brian Edgington (9.0 IP, 2 ER) turned in quality starts in games two and three, respectively.
• Virginia starting pitchers have turned in quality starts in eight of the last 10 NCAA Tournament games dating back to the 2023 Charlottesville Regional. The only two non-quality starts were against TCU in the College World Series (Connelly Early – 5.0 IP, 2 ER) and the 2024 Regional Opener against Penn (Joe Savino – 5.2 IP, 2 ER).
• Evan Blanco, a third team All-ACC selection, is the only Cavalier in the starting weekend rotation for the duration of the season. Blanco has five of the team’s eight quality starts this season.
• Blanco has pitched five or more innings in eight of his last nine starts and all but 14 of his 16 starts on the season.
• The lefthander has allowed four runs in his last 29 innings pitched and turned in quality starts in each of the last four.
• Jay Woolfolk made his first start since March 17 in the Sunday’s regional final against Mississippi State and put forth the best performance of his career. He pitched into the 9th inning and fanned a career-high seven batters. It was his first start since March 17.
• The eight-inning outing for Woolfolk was the longest by a UVA pitcher in a Regional final game.
• Chase Hungate appeared in two games during the Regional and earned his first career save by pitching the final 3.1 innings of a 4-2 win over Penn in the regional opener. The sidewinder needed only 33 pitches and struck out three.
• Hungate returned to get the final three outs of the Regional Final against Mississippi State on Sunday, needing just 10 pitches.
• Angelo Tonas has appeared in 118 career games over his collegiate career, the second most of any active player in all levels of NCAA college baseball. He leads the team with 30 this season, fifth-most in the ACC.
• Aidan Teel’s six saves are the seventh-most in the ACC. His last two saves have come against VCU and NC State and were both multi-inning efforts.

PLAYER NOTABLES

• For the second-straight season, Griff O’Ferrall was named as one of five finalists for the Brooks Wallace Award, annually given to the nation’s top shortstop. He became the program’s first ever finalist last season.
• O’Ferrall is statistically the toughest batter in the ACC to strikeout. He has struck out 22 times in 269 at bats. He has started every game of his collegiate career (182) all but one of which he’s batted leadoff for the Cavaliers.
• O’Ferrall, who led the ACC and broke the UVA single season record last season with 108 hits, currently ranks third in the ACC with 89.
• With one more hit, O’Ferrall is looking to join Ryan Zimmerman as the only two players in program history with two 90-hit seasons.
• Harrison Didawick is one home run shy of breaking UVA’ single season home run record (23) and one run shy of breaking the program’s single season runs scored mark (76) set by O’Ferrall last season.
• Ethan Anderson has reached base in 31-straight, the longest active streak on the team and longest of his career. Eric Becker has reached base in 28-straight games, a streak that includes two games which he came on as a pinch hitter and received only one plate appearance.
• Becker drove in four runs to lead a UVA comeback win over Mississippi State on June 1. He became the third UVA freshman with four RBI in an NCAA Tournament game, joining Kyle Teel (vs. DBU – 6/14/21) and Branden Cogswell (vs. Army 6/1/12).
• Amongst NCAA DI freshmen, Henry Ford ranks fourth in RBI (65), fifth in home runs (17), 5th in hits (79), and 9th in runs (59). Already staking claim to UVA’s freshman home run, run scored and RBI records, Ford his seven hits shy of the program’s freshman single season hits record.
• Bobby Whalen sports the ACC’s third-best batting average (.385) and also owns the team’s top average in ACC play (.360). He was at the plate for a walk-off win for the second time this season after his fielder’s choice to second base allowed the game-winning run to score against Mississippi State in the second game of the regional. It was the fourth ever walk-off victory in the NCAA Tournament and sixth of the season for UVA.
• Jacob Ference homered in four of the last six games of the regular season, all ACC contests. A total of 13 of his 17 homers this season came against ACC foes.