Cavaliers Capture First Regional Crown, Top No. 1 UC Irvine
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 06/01/2009

IRVINE, Calif. – The Virginia baseball team earned its first-ever NCAA Regional championship as the seventh-ranked Cavaliers defeated No. 1 UC Irvine, 4-1, Sunday night in the championship game of the 2009 NCAA Irvine Regional at Anteater Ballpark in Irvine, Calif. With their second win over the Anteaters, the No. 6 national seed, in as many nights, the second-seeded Cavaliers earn a berth in the NCAA Super Regionals next weekend.

Virginia (46-12-1) will play the champion of the Oxford Regional next weekend in a best-of-three series. Ole Miss and Western Kentucky will play the second championship game of that regional at 7 p.m. Monday. The site of the Super Regional will be announced at 11 p.m. ET Monday following the conclusion of regional play.

UC Irvine, the No. 1 seed in the regional, finishes its season with a 45-15 record.

In the regional, Virginia was strong in all phases of the game. The pitching staff dominated, allowing just two earned runs and 20 hits in 27 innings. The defense was flawless and did not commit an error – punctuated by two sensational defensive plays in the ninth inning Sunday. The Cavaliers did not trail at any point in their three regional games as they pushed their overall winning streak to eight.

Andrew Carraway (Sr., Marietta, Ga.) put up UVa’s third straight strong starting pitching performance in the regional. Carraway (7-1) worked seven innings, giving up just one earned run, four hits and one walk while fanning three. Kevin Arico (So., Flemington, N.J.) retired the final six batters in order to pick up his 11th save of the season.

Franco Valdes (Jr., Miami, Fla.) went 2-for-4 with a pair of run scoring hits (double, triple). He went 5-for-11 in the regional and was named the Irvine Regional Most Outstanding Player. He was joined on the All-Regional Team by third baseman Steven Proscia (Fr., Suffern, N.Y.), outfielder Jarrett Parker (So., Stafford, Va.), DH Phil Gosselin (So., West Chester, Pa.) and pitcher Danny Hultzen (Fr., Bethesda, Md.).

Parker was 3-for-5 Sunday and now has 90 hits this year – third most in UVa single-season history. He had a key ninth-inning triple to add a key insurance run to the Virginia lead.

UC Irvine reliever Kyle Necke (1-4) took the loss after pitching four innings while giving up two earned runs, two hits and two walks while striking out three. He pitched four scoreless innings before giving up a pair of runs in the ninth inning. Noel Avison started for UC Irvine and went 4.1 innings, allowing one earned run, six hits and one walk while striking out two.

The teams played 3.2 scoreless innings before Virginia snapped the deadlock with a two-out rally in the fourth. John Hicks (Fr., Sandy Hook, Va.) coaxed a walk and scored all the way from first when Valdes hit a 1-2 pitch to left field. The high-arching ball dropped just inside the foul line for a double, and Hicks slid in to just beat the throw and give UVa a 1-0 lead.

UC Irvine broke a string a 12 straight scoreless innings against UVa with a run in its half of the fourth. With one out, Casey Stevenson singled to left-center. He advanced to second on a groundout by Ronnie Shaeffer and scored on a single to right by Jeff Cusick.

Virginia took the lead for good with a sixth-inning run. Hultzen led off with a single and moved to second on a groundout by Hicks. Valdes then rocketed a ball down the right-field line and into the corner for a triple to score Hicks. It was Valdes’ first triple of 2009 and just his second career three-bagger.

The Anteaters had a golden opportunity to tie or take the lead in their half of the sixth. Ben Orloff bunted his way on to lead off and moved up on a groundout. After Stevenson was hit by a pitch, the two runners combined on a double steal. Carraway buckled down to strike out Shaeffer looking and then forced Cusick to ground out to Tyler Cannon (Jr., Pigeon Forge, Tenn.) to end the threat.

Carraway again evaded a UCI scoring opportunity in the seventh inning. Francis Larson led off with a single but was erased when Dillon Bell bunted into a force play. Bell, moving on the pitch, advanced on a groundout to Carraway by Jordan Fox. UVa head coach Brian O’Connor, after a visit to the mound, elected to leave Carraway in the game and was rewarded when the senior induced pinch-hitter Ryan Fisher to weakly pop out to Carraway.

Virginia got a bit of breathing room after adding a pair of insurance runs in the ninth inning. Keith Werman (Fr., Vienna, Va.) drew a one-out walk against Necke. UCI brought on All-America closer Eric Pettis, who was greeted by Parker with a line-drive triple just inside the first-base line which rolled into the corner. The triple was Parker’s seventh this season – tying the UVa single-season record. Cannon then launched a triple to left-center to score Parker and give the Cavaliers a 4-1 lead.


 

UC Irvine ousted by Virginia in regional
The top-ranked Anteaters are eliminated at home by the Cavaliers, 4-1.
By CURTIS ZUPKE
The Orange County Register
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IRVINE -- No one had to tell UC Irvine that the road out of its own NCAA regional would be difficult.
Not only did it face what many observers called the toughest draw of the tournament, Irvine took the path of most resistance by falling into the losers bracket. That path ultimately ended its season with a 4-1 loss to Virginia late Sunday night at Anteater Ballpark.
Top-ranked Irvine managed just four hits, and Virginia got back-to-back RBI triples from Jarrett Parker and Tyler Cannon in the ninth inning to put the game away and end UCI¡¦s bid for a third consecutive super regional.
The end was especially disappointing considering the Anteaters were in the game late despite the lack of offense.
¡§It¡¦s disappointing to see it end like that,¡¨ senior shortstop Ben Orloff said. ¡§We laid it on the line and gave ourselves a chance today.
¡§We battled today. We got great pitching performances ¡K Any time you have to play a team like Virginia and have to come out of the losers bracket, it¡¦s going to be tough, for sure.¡¨
Irvine coach Mike Gillespie couldn¡¦t fault his team too much. UCI had to defeat San Diego State, 14-3, in the early game just to get to Sunday night.
¡§We¡¦re extraordinarily proud of our guys,¡¨ Gillespie said. ¡§Hats off to Virginia, who is a really, really good team. We¡¦re very impressed with them.¡¨
The seventh-ranked Cavaliers (46-12-1) will face the winner of today¡¦s game between Mississippi and Western Kentucky in a super regional, and it will feel fortunate to get there.
The quality of pitching in Irvine¡¦s regional was no understatement. The winning teams had combined for eight runs allowed compared to 36 at Cal State Fullerton¡¦s regional.
Still, the Anteaters (44-15) had their opportunities. Trailing, 2-1, they had runners at second and third with one out in the sixth but struck out and grounded out. They got a leadoff single from Francis Larson in the seventh, but Virginia retired the next three batters.
Because Irvine had to use No. 3 pitcher Crosby Slaught for its early game, it started senior left hander Noel Avison, who made just his second start this season and went a season-high 4ƒ¦1/3 innings.
He kept Virginia off the scoreboard until the fourth, when Franco Valdes lifted a fly ball that fell in left field for a two-out RBI double and 1-0 lead.
Irvine¡¦s Jeff Cusick tied it in the bottom of the inning with a two-out RBI single off a 3-2 pitch to score Casey Stevenson.
Avison gave up a leadoff single in the fifth but got a strikeout before he left to loud cheers from the crowd.
Valdes gave Virginia a run in the sixth with a laser shot that hit the first base bag and bounced into right field for a triple to score Danny Hultzen, who had reached on a leadoff single. UCI reliever Kyle Necke got out of the inning by striking out Jarrett Parker looking.
Virginia starter Andrew Carraway did not give up a hit until Stevenson singled in the fourth.
¡§This was a very, very good game,¡¨ Gillespie said. ¡§There was very little margin for error.¡¨
Tthe Anteaters had little trouble on offense in its afternoon elimination game.
Orloff went 3 for 5 with three RBIs and Ronnie Shaeffer went 3-for-4 with three RBIs as UCI pounded out 19 hits to eliminate San Diego State.
Irvine¡¦s 1-2-3 hitters Orloff, Eric Deragisch and Shaeffer combined to go 8 for 13 with seven RBIs. Orloff broke it open with a three-run double in the seventh to put Irvine up, 12-3.
Cusick highlighted a three-run fifth inning with a two-out, two run double to make it 6-2. Dillon Bell followed with a single and Irvine was on its way.
 

Cavaliers try to move past checkered NCAA past
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 1, 2009

IRVINE, Calif. — Brian O’Connor made it blatantly obvious.

Two words would not be mentioned inside Anteater Park: Oregon State.

In 2007, Virginia won the first two games in the Charlottesville Regional, only to watch any and everything that could go wrong do just that.

Two players that hit in the top four spots in the batting order were lost to season-ending injuries during the regional. Another was drilled by a pitch in the neck, leaving a grapefruit-sized lump.

When the dust settled, Virginia watched as Oregon State stole the regional and rode an emotional wave to a national title.

Virginia, the second-seeded team in the Irvine Regional, sat in the same position late Sunday evening as it awaited a championship round contest with third-seeded San Diego State or top-seeded UC Irvine.

Even with a loss, the Cavaliers would need to be upended on Monday to miss reaching their first Super Regional, a berth that would secure a best-of-three series with the winner of the regional played at Ole Miss.

To get into the driver’s seat in the four-team regional, the Cavaliers (45-12-1) defied the odds by dispatching San Diego State’s flame-thrower, Stephen Strasburg, on Friday.

That was followed by a 5-0 victory over host UC Irvine late Saturday night.

Winning the first two guaranteed nothing. But memories of the past, however, will not haunt this current crop of Cavaliers.

“This is a different team,” O’Connor said when asked of comparing his current spot to 2007. “We were at home in that regional and went 2-0, but the difference in this ballclub is that we are at full strength. We had some unfortunate things happen in that ballgame that we went 2-0 in [against Oregon State].

“I don’t know, but I would probably say 90 percent of this club wasn’t around at that time. This team has made its own identity all year long and it started by winning the ACC championship last week.”

Virginia is at full strength, especially with a pitching staff that had allowed just one earned run in the 24 innings that preceded Sunday’s contest.

Rookie phenom Danny Hultzen was the latest hero, hurling 7.1 innings of scoreless ball in the five-run shutout victory over Irvine. It was the first time this season that the Anteaters were blanked.

Virginia’s stout earned run average sat at 3.23 after nine scoreless innings against the nation’s top-ranked team.

“We have been known for great pitching in our program for six years and that is never going to change,” O’Connor said. “This time of year you not only have to get it done early in the game but you have to have guts at the end to shut the door and pitch out of jams.”

There is another obvious difference from the team that let a Super Regional berth slip through their hands two years ago.

Just ask Strasburg. Virginia can produce runs.

“The difference, I think, in this ballclub is … we are better offensively than we have been in six years,” O’Connor said. “I think that is a big difference and that is why I really like this club.”

Cavaliers dominate UC Irvine in regional bid
By Jay Jenkins
Published: May 31, 2009

IRVINE, Calif. - The first Super Regional berth in Virginia history is just one win away.
Behind a stellar pitching performance from rookie Danny Hultzen and timely hitting in the middle portion of the game, second-seeded Virginia knocked off top-seeded UC Irvine 5-0 to remain perfect in the Irvine Regional.

The Cavaliers (45-12-1) await today’s winner in a loser’s bracket contest between San Diego State and Irvine. With a victory tonight at 11 p.m., Virginia will punch its long awaited ticket for a Super Regional.

The winner of the SDSU-UC Irvine contest must beat the Cavaliers twice, including once in the final contest Monday night at 11 p.m. to advance.
Clearly, Saturday’s victory over hosting UC Irvine put Virginia in the catbird seat.
“Tonight’s ballgame was obviously very important for us to win and play well,” said Virginia coach Brian O’Connor. “I felt like all game long we played a good, solid, fundamental baseball game.”

UC Irvine, the nation’s top-ranked team, could not say the same. The Anteaters committed four errors.

The sloppy play started in the bottom-half of the fifth inning with the game scoreless.

With runners on the corners, Virginia second baseman Keith Werman hit a grounder to Irvine shortstop Ben Orloff for a would-be double play. That went awry, however, when the relay throw from second baseman Casey Stevenson skipped past first baseman Jeff Lusick and scooted into the Anteaters’ dugout.
With Werman standing at second and Virginia leading 1-0, sophomore Jarrett Parker laced a single to right field that snuck under the glove of Tony Asaro and rolled to the wall.
“Part of our story this year was that we have played very, very consistent defense,” said UC Irvine coach Mike Gillespie. “At times we’ve even played highlight defense, very, very good defense. So this is really atypical for us.”

It got worse in the sixth inning.
Virginia left fielder Phil Gosselin reached on a throwing error from Orloff and scored on a single by third baseman Steven Proscia.
After another Anteater error, catcher Franco Valdes drove in the Cavaliers’ final two runs with a two-out single.
“That was the biggest hit in the game,” O’Connor said. “No lead is ever enough against a team with the talent that UC Irvine boasts.”
The four errors helped chase UC Irvine starter Christian Bergman (8-2), who did not allow a hit until the fourth inning. Bergman allowed all five runs, four of which were earned, on eight hits.

“It took us about five innings or so to figure out Bergman,” O’Connor said. “I thought he did a good job of mixing and matching his pitches and locating his fastball. He kept us off stride.
“Fortunately, in the fifth and sixth inning we were able to figure him out.”

The five-run cushion was plenty for Hultzen, the ACC freshman of the year.

The left-handed starter scattered six hits over 7.1 innings, fanning four batters and relying on stellar defense in the process.
“Danny Hultzen was terrific tonight,” O’Connor said. “I think that’s one of his better outings of the year. He pitched out of numerous jams and really stepped.”
UVa faced a hairy situation after Hultzen allowed a one-out single in the eighth.
Tyler Wilson, who relieved Hultzen, allowed back-to-back singles to load the bases with Anteaters, but worked out of the jam by getting Jeff Cusick to hit into a 6-4-3 double play. It was the third double play turned in the game by the Cavaliers.
Wilson allowed two more singles in the ninth inning, forcing O’Connor to turn to junior Matt Packer to get the final two outs.
Packer, who is in line to start Monday if needed, did not disappoint, using just seven pitches to close the contest out.
For the game, Virginia tallied nine hits. Dan Grovatt and Valdes paced the attack with two hits apiece.

In tonight’s contest, Virginia will turn to senior RHP Andrew Carraway. The co-captain has not appeared in the regional and will be working on six days rest.
San Diego State and UC Irvine did not disclose pitching plans Saturday.
Tonight’s championship game will be televised at 11 p.m. by both ESPNU and Comcast Sports.

 

Unheralded Morey wins duel
By Jay Jenkins
Published: May 31, 2009

IRVINE, Calif. — Back in late March in a pivotal series at North Carolina, the only rubber that Robert Morey toed was in the visitor’s bullpen.

The Virginia sophomore was relegated that point to the depths of an often-struggling bullpen.

As fate would have it, Morey patiently waited for a more prominent role.

That came eventually with a spot in the rotation, and that honor was boosted even further Friday for the hard-throwing Virginia native. Morey was tabbed to throw the first pitch in a contest where he was initially overshadowed by an ESPN darling.

Morey had the last laugh.

Outdueling future millionaire Stephen Strasburg and San Diego State, Morey lifted the second-seeded Cavaliers to an improbable 5-1 victory by registering nine strikeouts over six scoreless innings.

You would not have known Morey’s prowess on the mound from watching highlights on SportsCenter or Baseball Tonight — programs that tracked Strasburg’s every movement — but a Hall of Famer with 3,141 career hits took notice.

“He was changing speeds, he was going up the ladder, he was mixing in his breaking ball with a straight changeup,” said SDSU coach Tony Gwynn, who played 20 years for the San Diego Padres. “All our opportunities came with two outs and when he needed to make a pitch, he made a pitch.”

Morey stranded nine of the Aztecs’ 10 runners that were left on base as he leaned on a nasty slider that was clocked at 85 miles per hour.

Knowing that he had more rest than starters Andrew Carraway and Matt Packer, Morey envisioned getting the call in the opening game against Strasburg days before Virginia coach Brian O’Connor actually informed him.

“I was excited all week,” said Morey, who improved to 3-0. “I prepared all week like I was going to throw regardless if I was going to or not. That’s what helped me the most. I stayed level-headed.

“Coming into [the game], I was really confident. Warming up I felt great. I felt it was a great opportunity for the whole team, but I also felt it was a great opportunity for me to see what I had against one of the best pitchers we’ve faced.”

Snapping out of a slump

Virginia designated hitter Phil Gosselin entered the Irvine Regional in a self-documented slump at the plate.

You could not tell from his first-inning swing on a Strasburg fastball that hovered the plate at Gosselin’s kneecaps.

“I was going up there looking for a fastball. I knew he was going to be around the plate,” Gosselin said. “Like coach [O’Connor] said, he doesn’t walk many guys and has real good command, but that was one of the few mistakes that he made.

“He left the ball over the plate and supplied most of the power and I just had to put my barrel on it.”

It was the sixth homer of the season for Gosselin and his first since April 22 against Georgetown, snapping a streak of 15 games without clearing the fence.

A packed house

On Thursday evening, a collection of Virginia’s players were stuck in an elevator at the team hotel for about 15 minutes.

“There were a bunch of us in there,” said Virginia pitcher Sean Lucas. “After a while it started to get a little scary.”

Honoring a Virginia legend

A circular patch with a No. 24 was added to Virginia’s uniforms for the regional.

O’Connor said the patch was commissioned to honor former Virginia coach James O. West.
 

Virginia 4th at NCAAs
By The Daily Progress Staff
Published: June 1, 2009

In Cherry Hill, N.J., the Virginia rowing team’s quest for its first-ever NCAA championship will continue — but there were still plenty of positives coming out this year’s championships.
UVa finished with 78 points — including a second-place finish in the Varsity Eight — to claim fourth place. The runner-up finish for the Varsity Eight tied the highest in program history, besting a third-place finish in 2000. Virginia also finished second in 1999.
As a team, UVa finished in the top four for the eighth time in the 13-year history of the championships, with the program’s all-time top overall finish being second. Stanford was this year’s NCAA Champion with 88 points, followed by California (85) and Yale (85). California edged out Yale for second place by virtue of a better finish in the grand final of the Varsity Eight.
“To finish fourth is a great testament to the resiliency of this team,” said head coach Kevin Sauer.
Virginia’s Varsity Eight, consisting of coxswain Sidney Thorsten, Jennifer Cromwell, Helen Tompkins, Desiree Burns, Amanda Chase, Lauren Hutchins, Augusta Stratos, Nora Phillips and Victoria Burke, put forth a game effort throughout the 2,000-meter race.
Trailing No. 1-ranked Stanford at the halfway point of the race by just under two seconds, UVa pushed to the end and was barely edged by the Cardinal by less than one second at the finish line.
“We knew if we kept in contact with Stanford we would have a chance to win,” said senior co-captain Augusta Stratos. “We are so proud of how we raced.”
Too close to call by sight at the finish line, Stanford was announced minutes after the race ended as the NCAA Champion with a time of 6:11.95. Virginia’s second-place time was 6:12.32, followed by California (6:14.76).
In the Second Varsity Eight, Virginia finished sixth in its grand final with a time of 6:37.17.
Yale won that race with a time of 6:29.04, followed by California (6:29.58), Stanford (6:31.88), Brown (6:32.93) and Washington (6:34.28). The Cavaliers earned 22 points for their sixth-place finish.
Meanwhile, the Varsity Four was won by Clemson with a time of 7:26.78.

 

UVa Finishes Fourth at NCAA Championships
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 05/31/2009

CHERRY HILL, N.J. – Virginia finished with 78 points, including a second-place finish in the Varsity Eight, to claim fourth place at the 2009 NCAA Rowing Championships Sunday on the Cooper River.

The runner-up finish for the Varsity Eight tied the highest in program history, besting a third-place finish in 2000. The Cavaliers also finished second in 1999.

As a team, the Cavaliers finished in the top four for the eighth time in the 13-year history of the championships, with the program's all-time top overall finish being second. Stanford was this year's NCAA Champion with 88 points, followed by California (85) and Yale (85). California edged out Yale for second place by virtue of a better finish in the grand final of the Varsity Eight.

“To finish fourth is a great testament to the resiliency of this team,” head coach Kevin Sauer said.

Virginia’s Varsity Eight of coxswain Sidney Thorsten, Jennifer Cromwell, Helen Tompkins, Desiree Burns, Amanda Chase, Lauren Hutchins, Augusta Stratos, Nora Phillips and Victoria Burke put forth a heroic effort throughout the 2,000-meter race. Trailing No. 1-ranked Stanford at the halfway point of the race by just under two seconds, Virginia pushed to the end and was barely edged by the Cardinal by less than one second at the finish line.

“We knew if we kept in contact with Stanford we would have a chance to win,” senior co-captain Augusta Stratos said. “We are so proud of how we raced.”

Too close to call by sight at the finish line, Stanford was announced minutes after the race ended as the NCAA Champion with a time of 6:11.95. Virginia’s second-place time was 6:12.32, followed by California (6:14.76).

The second-place finish garnered UVa 45 points toward the team standings.

“That was the best collegiate women’s rowing race I have seen, and I’ve been doing this for awhile,” Sauer said. “What an amazing race. They kept bringing it all the way to the last stroke, they just ran out of water.”

In the Second Varsity Eight, the crew of coxswain Cristine Candland, Lauren Shook, Claudia Blandford, Marie Long, Bridget Fowler, Martha Kuzzy, Cara Linnenkohl, Christine Roper and Susie Chalker finished sixth in its grand final with a time of 6:37.17.

Yale won that race with a time of 6:29.04, followed by California (6:29.58), Stanford (6:31.88), Brown (6:32.93) and Washington (6:34.28). The Cavaliers earned 22 points for their sixth-place finish.

The first race of the day, the Varsity Four, was won by Atlantic Coast Conference competitor Clemson with a time of 7:26.78. UVa finished sixth with a time of 7:34.26 and earned 11 points towards its team standings.

The Varsity Four crew is coxswain Sarah Pichardo, Ruth Retzinger, Summers Nelson, Caroline Sweeny, Shalane Carlson.

Final Team Standings (Points)
1. Stanford (88)
2. California (85)
3. Yale (85)
4. Virginia (78)
5. Brown (71)
6. Michigan State (54)
7. Washington (50)
8. Ohio State (49)
9. Michigan (48)
10. Princeton (46)
11. Southern California (46)
12. Clemson (43)
13. Wisconsin (26)
14. Harvard (21)
15. Oregon State (14)
16. Dartmouth (12)

Grand Final Results
EVENT: VARSITY EIGHT
Grand Final: 1. Stanford (6:11.95); 2. Virginia (6:12.32); 3. California (6:14.76); 4. Yale (6:17.22); 5. Brown (6:18.13); 6. Princeton (6:24.02)
• (Virginia lineup: Coxswain Sidney Thorsten, Jennifer Cromwell, Helen Tompkins, Desiree Burns, Amanda Chase, Lauren Hutchins, Augusta Stratos, Nora Phillips, Victoria Burke)

EVENT: SECOND VARSITY EIGHT
Grand Final: 1. Yale (6:29.04); 2. California (6:29.58); 3. Stanford (6:31.88); 4. Brown (6:32.93); 5. Washington (6:34.28); 6. Virginia (6:37.17)
• (Virginia lineup: Coxswain Cristine Candland, Lauren Shook, Claudia Blandford, Marie Long, Bridget Fowler, Martha Kuzzy, Cara Linnenkohl, Christine Roper, Susie Chalker)

EVENT: VARSITY FOUR
Grand Final: 1. Clemson (7:26.78); 2. Wisconsin (7:28.54); 3. Yale (7:30.81); 4. California (7:32.01); 5. Stanford (7:32.29); 6. Virginia (7:34.26)
• (Virginia lineup: Coxswain Sarah Pichardo, Ruth Retzinger, Summers Nelson, Caroline Sweeny, Shalane Carlson)