Cavaliers Walk Off No. 20 Stanford for O’Connor’s 900th win

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.  – The Virginia baseball team (15-11, 6-6 ACC) rallied from a four-run deficit on Saturday afternoon (March 29) to complete the series sweep of No. 20 Stanford (16-9, 5-7 ACC) with a walk-off 9-8 victory in 10 innings at Disharoon Park.

Down to the final out in the bottom of the 10th, Aidan Teel doubled to right field, scoring James Nunnallee all the way from first base to give Virginia its third comeback victory of the series and 10th of the season.

UVA’s middle infield tandem of Eric Becker and Henry Godbout each went 3-for-5 on the afternoon to pace the Cavalier offense. Godbout plated the game-tying run in the bottom of the ninth inning.To go along with his three hits, Becker also drove in a trio of runs and scored twice.

With the win, Virginia head coach Brian O’Connor becomes the 15th active head coach in Division I with 900 career wins. O’Connor is one of eight coaches in ACC history with 900 wins while a league member.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Stanford opened the scoring with a three-run top of the second aided by a Cavalier fielding error.
• The visiting Cardinal extended their lead an inning later with a solo home run off the bat of Jimmy Nati.
• UVA stormed back to tie the game at 4-4 with a four-run third that featured four straight base hits to open the frame.

• Virginia took its first lead of the game at 5-4 in the bottom of the sixth when Jacob Ference scampered home on back-to-back wild pitches after reaching base on a ground-rule double.
• Following another Cavalier fielding error that loaded the bases with no outs, Stanford plated three runs to regain a 7-4 lead after seven innings played.
• A two-out Cardinal error in the bottom of the eighth allowed Chris Arroyo to score from second and opened the door for the Virginia comeback.
• Stanford’s final run of the game came in the top of the ninth on an RBI single to right, pushing the Cardinal advantage to 8-6.
• A Luke Hanson leadoff single set the stage for the dramatics in the bottom of the ninth. Hanson came around to score two batters later when a ground ball off the bat of Becker bounced over the head of the Stanford first baseman to make it a one-run game.
• Godbout forced extras with an RBI single through the left side that plated Becker to tie the game at 8-8.

• Stanford’s Tatum Marsh robbed Jacob Ference of a potential walk-off hit for the final out of the ninth when the freshman came up with a diving catch in left-center.
• The Cavalier relief duo of Ryan Osinski and Matthew Buchanan worked around a leadoff single in the top of the tenth to keep the contest notched at 8-8.
• Nunnallee singled up the middle to give the Cavaliers a base runner in the bottom of the tenth. Two at-bats later, Teel stepped to the plate and slashed a 1-0 pitch to right field deep enough to score Nunnallee from first and to give Virginia a 9-8 victory.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• In the sweep of Stanford, the Cavalier offense produced 33 runs on 44 hits during the three-game series.
• Saturday’s win is the second walk-off of the season for the Cavaliers and the first at home.
• UVA moves to 13-1 on the season when out-hitting opponents.
• The three-game sweep of No. 20 Stanford is the first home sweep of a ranked team for Virginia since taking all three games from No. 20 Miami in 2023.
• Virginia is 18-5 all-time against current D1 programs located in the state of California.

UP NEXT

The Cavaliers will conclude their four-game homestand on Tuesday (April 1) when they welcome the Old Dominion Monarchs to Disharoon Park. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m. with broadcasts on ACCNX and WINA (98.9/1070 AM).