OMAHA! Virginia seals Series trip with win over Mississippi
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 7, 2009

OXFORD, Miss. — Omaha, your boy is coming home.

In historic fashion, Virginia and coach Brian O’Connor punched the program’s first-ever ticket for the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., registering a 5-1 victory over Ole Miss on Sunday at sun-splashed Swayze Field at Oxford-University Stadium.

After recording the final out, setting a school record with the season’s 48th victory, Virginia’s players raced to the middle of the infield for a dogpile of epic proportions. Those to arrive early were buried in a sea of Cavalier uniforms.

“It is obviously very special for me having grown up in the town, my father taking me to games growing up,” said O’Connor, who grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, just minutes from Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha. “It is an unbelievable feeling. You put so much time and effort into your job and this is one of the rewards.

“I am looking forward to it.”

O’Connor quickly shifted the focus, however, to the players.

“A lot will be made of that and really I don’t want it to be about that,” O’Connor said. “It is [the team]. This is an opportunity of a lifetime for them. Hopefully, it is an opportunity that will continue to happen in this program.

“They are going to get to be a part of something that is amazing. I think it is the greatest sporting event in college athletics, hands down.”

As has been the case at times during the postseason, Virginia was forced to mount a comeback in cardiac fashion to register the super regional victory.

In fact, Ole Miss scored in the top half of the first inning as Matt Smith delivered a two-out, run-scoring single off Virginia starter Robert Poutier.

In the fourth inning, however, the Cavaliers struck back.

After using a double steal to get two runners in scoring position, Virginia rookie John Hicks delivered a sacrifice fly to right field to plate Phil Gosselin.

“Once we got that run, we were right there,” O’Connor said, “and our guys weren’t going to be denied.”

That was certainly the case in the fifth inning, a game-changing frame that included three runs, three hits and two Ole Miss errors.

Virginia freshman Steven Proscia, who had three of the Cavaliers’ nine hits, opened the frame with a single and narrowly stole second off Ole Miss starter Nathan Baker and catcher Kyle Henson.

“The throw actually beat me there, but he caught it in front of the base, so I was able to get to the outside part of the bag,” said Proscia, who stole two of Virginia’s six bases in the contest. “I think the running part in our game today was a huge part. It is a chance to do things with runners in motion and our hitters just stepped up.”

Virginia’s emotional leader, catcher Franco Valdes, drove Proscia in with a bouncing single through the middle of the infield, giving Virginia’s a 2-1 lead.

“It was a big hit,” O’Connor said. “He found a hole up the middle. It goes back to what I talk about this time of year. Some breaks have to go your way.

“He stepped, stayed inside on the ball and put the ball in play. If you do that good things happen.”

Things suddenly came unraveled for Ole Miss, which dropped to 0-10 under coach Mike Bianco in contests that could have sent the program to the College World Series.

On a grounder by Virginia sophomore John Barr, Ole Miss shortstop Kevin Mort charged the ball, but it rolled under his glove and into the outfield, allowing Valdes to advance to third.

“I saw the big hop, so I came to get it. I misplayed it,” Mort said. “Obviously, it was a bad play that was a big turning point in the game.

“That might have been the key play in the whole game that turned it around for them.”

After Barr stole second, Tyler Cannon hit a sacrifice fly and Phil Gosselin followed with a run-scoring single.

The three-run inning, which included two unearned runs, chased Baker from the contest.

“Towards the end of the fifth inning, I was just leaving some of the pitches up, and the Virginia hitters knew how to react to it,” said Baker, who struck out six.

It was ample run support for a trio of pitchers from Virginia’s bullpen.

Tyler Wilson, who earned the win, relieved Poutier and worked 3.1 innings. Matt Packer, who pitched on Friday and Saturday, then followed by scattering two hits as he worked the seventh and eighth innings.

“Being tired isn’t really an option at this point,” Packer said. “That’s not even really a word that we think about. All the guys that came out of the bullpen, I don’t know, we just got it done.

“We have been doing it all year coming out back-to-back days. We are used to it.”

Even after Virginia scored a lone run in the eighth, O’Connor summoned closer Kevin Arico in a non-save situation for the ninth. The sophomore fanned a pair of Rebels, including the final two batters of the game, to start the wild celebration.

“When you win like that you just go out there and you don’t really feel anything,” Poutier chuckled. “I think I got a few cracked ribs, a black eye and a broken elbow, but the pain is well worth it. It is well worth the five-year wait.”

Gosselin added: “I didn’t think it could get much better than the dogpile at the ACC championship, but that certainly tops it right there.”

Virginia will draw LSU, the No. 3 national seed, in its opening game on Saturday at the College World Series. A game time, 2 p.m. or 7 p.m., will be announced after the complete field is determined Monday night.

“I think it is a dream come true,” Proscia said. “Every kid dreams of playing college baseball and getting to Omaha. To be able to do that is unbelievable.”

Having been battle tested by its path to the College World Series, O’Connor is excited to return to Rosenblatt Stadium, where he played while at Creighton and coached as an assistant at Notre Dame.

“We are obviously going out to Omaha to win and I have a lot of confidence in this team to win,” O’Connor said. “Our road to Omaha this year went through Irvine, California and through Oxford, Mississippi.

“It was a long road, but a happy road to take.”

 

OMAHA BOUND! Cavaliers Win First Super Regional
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 06/07/2009

OXFORD, Miss. – The Virginia baseball team captured its first berth in the College World Series after earning a 5-1 win over Ole Miss Sunday in front of 10,110 spectators at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field in the NCAA Oxford Super Regional. After dropping the first game of the super regional, Virginia rallied to take the final two games and win the series.

The Cavaliers will take on LSU next weekend at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb. The brackets for the CWS will be announced Monday evening following the conclusion of the super regionals.

Virginia broke a school record with its 48th victory. That tops the 2006 team’s total of 47.

Virginia’s pitching staff pulled together and scattered seven hits and just a first-inning run. Tyler Wilson (So., Midlothian, Va.) worked 3.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen to earn the win and improve to 9-3 this year. He gave up two hits and a walk while fanning three. Matt Packer (Jr., Germantown, Tenn.) pitched two scoreless innings and allowed a pair of hits while striking out one. Kevin Arico (So., Flemington, N.J.) pitched the ninth to finish off the championship.

Robert Poutier (Sr., Yorktown, Va.) started for Virginia and tossed 2.2 innings, giving up one earned run, two hits and two walks while striking out four.

Rebels’ starter Nathan Baker (4-3) pitched five innings, surrendering four runs (two earned), five hits and one walk. He struck out six.

Steven Proscia (Fr., Suffern, N.Y.) had three hits for the Cavaliers, while Phil Gosselin (So., West Chester, Pa.) and John Hicks (Fr., Sandy Hook, Va.) each added a pair.

Ole Miss (44-20) scored a run in the first inning. Jordan Henry led off with a double to right-center and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Logan Power. After Poutier struck out Matt Snyder, Matt Smith lined a single to right to plate Henry.

The Cavaliers (48-13-1) knotted the score in the fourth inning while taking advantage of their speed. With one out, Phil Gosselin (So., West Chester, Pa.) singled up the middle. After numerous tosses to first, Gosselin swiped second without a throw. Dan Grovatt (So., Tabernacle, N.J.) then walked and the two combined for a double steal. John Hicks (Fr., Sandy Hook, Va.) then lifted a sacrifice fly to right field to bring home Gosselin.

Virginia posted three runs in the fifth inning to take the lead. Steven Proscia (Fr., Suffern, N.Y.) ripped a single to left to open the inning, then stole second. Franco Valdes (Jr., Miami, Fla.) hit a 1-2 Baker offering up the middle for a single to score Proscia. John Barr (So., Ivyland, Pa.) then hit a chopper which shortstop Kevin Mort booted, allowing Valdes to move to third. One out later, Tyler Cannon (Jr., Pigeon Forge, Tenn.) hit a sacrifice fly to right to bring home Valdes. Gosselin then slapped a single to right to score Barr from second and push the UVa lead to 4-1.

The Cavaliers added an insurance run in the eighth inning off Ole Miss closer Jake Morgan. Hicks led off with a double to left-center, and Hultzen followed with a single to left to move Hicks to third. Proscia then drilled a double into the left-field corner to score Hicks, with Hultzen stopping at third.

For Cavalier fans interested in following the UVa Baseball team to Omaha for the College World Series, UVa Athletics and the Virginia Athletics Foundation have partnered with Premiere Global Sports – College Division to assist you with booking your travel. Please call them toll free at 1-800-553-5527 for assistance in booking commercial air or hotel reservations. Offices will be open at 8 a.m. on Monday.


 

Same song, third sad verse for Rebels
David Brandt • david.brandt@clarionledger.com • June 8, 2009

OXFORD — For the third time in the past five years, Ole Miss players watched helplessly as players from another baseball program formed a human dogpile at Oxford-University Stadium, celebrating a coveted spot in the College World Series.

This time, it was Virginia. The Cavaliers beat the Rebels 5-1 on Sunday in the third game of a best-of-three NCAA Super Regional.

But at this point, after so many near-misses over the past half decade, the name on the front of the opponent's jerseys was almost hard to distinguish as the beaten down announced crowd of 10,110 shuffled out of Oxford-University Stadium.

Was it Texas, like in 2005? Or Miami, like in 2006? Was it Virginia, like on this bright, sunshine-filled day? This story had been told on this field before, but the new version was still excruciatingly painful.

"When you get to this point and don't make it," UM coach Mike Bianco said. "It hurts a lot."

Ole Miss (44-20) saw its season end in a Super Regional for the fourth time in five years. The Rebels won the first game of this series 4-3 in 12 innings on a walk-off homer by Matt Smith, but dropped the next two, as in 2005 and 2006. Virginia (44-17-1) goes to its first College World Series in school history, ending its own string of postseason frustration.

"You've got to be good (to go to Omaha)," Virginia coach Brian O'Connor said. "But you've also got to be lucky."

And on Sunday, Ole Miss was neither. The Rebels jumped on top in the first inning when Jordan Henry led off the game with a double and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. Then with two outs, Matt Smith ripped an RBI single for a 1-0 lead.

But after that, the UM bats were held silent by a parade of Virginia pitchers, managing just seven hits off Robert Poutier, Tyler Wilson (9-3), Matt Packer and Kevin Arico.

"They have a great pitching staff," UM outfielder Jordan Henry said. "They're very deep. They do a good job of mixing it up and we weren't able to do much with them this weekend."

For a while, UM starting pitcher Nathan Baker (4-3) matched the Cavaliers on the mound, throwing three scoreless innings before giving up a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning to tie the game at 1.

But things fell apart in the fifth inning, as Virginia scored three runs to take a 4-1 lead thanks to three hits and two stolen bases along with two Ole Miss errors - including a crucial one by usually reliable shortstop Kevin Mort.

With a runner on first, Mort charged hard on a ground ball to try and turn the double play. Instead, he completely missed the ball and the rally continued.

"It was a bad play and it was a big turning point in the game," Mort said. "It might have been the key play."

Even after that ugly fifth inning, the Rebels had chances to get back into the game. But even when they did something right, something always immediately went wrong.

Take the seventh inning, when Matt Snyder drew a lead-off walk. Then Smith, the cleanup hitter, came to the plate and crushed a ball down the first-base line.

The only problem was Virginia first baseman Danny Hultzen was standing right on the bag while holding Snyder. He caught the line drive for an easy double play.

Even O'Connor admitted that the baseball gods had smiled upon the Cavaliers.

"We earned it," he said. "But Ole Miss hit a lot of balls hard right at people."

That was little consolation on Sunday evening, as the Rebels faced the realization that the College World Series will be played for the 37th straight year without their presence.

And why?

Some questioned Bianco's decision to bunt twice with runners on second and no outs, which stymied potential big innings. Others pointed to Virginia's ability to run wild against the Rebels' left-handed pitchers, stealing six bases on Sunday and 12 for the series.

In the end, Bianco said it was pretty easy to explain: Virginia played better than Ole Miss with a trip to Omaha on the line.

"Today," he said. "They just did more than we did to win."
 

Baffling decisions cost Rebels dearly
Rick Cleveland • rcleveland@clarionledger.com • June 8, 2009

Virginia was just better. Let's get that out of the way first. For this superb NCAA Super Regional, Virginia outplayed Ole Miss before loud, overflow crowds of mostly Rebel fans.

Virginia, which won Sunday's deciding game 5-1, deserves to go to Omaha.

As Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco put it, "At the end of the day, you tip your hats to Virginia. They made more plays than we did."

That said, with the College World Series berth on the line, Virginia was far more aggressive, far more assertive. With tickets to Omaha on the line, Virginia snatched them.

Ole Miss bunted.

This all comes with this disclaimer: Bianco is one of the most successful baseball coaches in Mississippi history. Four Super Regional berths in five seasons speak volumes. So does the amazing scene we've witnessed here for the past 10 days. Bianco has caused it all.

Nevertheless, his first-inning decision was baffling.

Jordan Henry led off with a double, the same as he had the day before when Logan Power followed with a two-run home run. That was Saturday. On Sunday, Bianco signaled for Power to bunt and move Henry to third.

Never mind that there were no outs and Henry, a speedster, would score from second on most any base hit. Never mind that a sacrifice did nothing to keep Ole Miss out of a double-play situation. Never mind that Power has been a hot hitter lately.

Why give up an out in that situation? I could understand playing for one run if Ole Miss had Sandy Koufax - or even Drew Pomeranz - on the mound. Nathan Baker, who did pitch superbly, was making his first start since April 28.

You had to figure Ole Miss was going to need to put up a crooked number somewhere along the way to win this day. When better than the first?

Instead, Power got down the bunt, moving Henry to third with one out. Matt Snyder then struck out, before Matt Smith delivered with a two-out single that would have scored Henry from second, just as easily as third. Kyle Henson then made the third out and Ole Miss had the only run it would score all day.

"I thought the way everybody had pitched the entire series that runs were going to be at a premium," Bianco explained when asked about the strategy, which he repeated in the fourth inning.

Deflating moment
That time Kyle Henson was at second base with no outs and Ole Miss leading 1-0. That time, Zach Miller was called on to bunt. And that time, the bunt went directly to Virginia pitcher Tyler Wilson, who threw out Henson easily at third. Talk about taking the air out of the crowd. Talk about getting the 400 or so Virginia fans into the game.

"One time it worked, one time it didn't," Bianco said.

We could argue that. But we can't argue this: Virginia tied the game in the bottom of the fourth when Phil Gosselin singled with one out and then Dan Grovatt walked. Bunt?

No, Virginia coach Brian O'Connor called for the double steal, which worked.

Matter of fact, O'Connor called for six steals over the course of the game, 13 over the course of the series. Twelve were successful.

O'Connor chose the more aggressive approach in all cases, especially in the fifth in a 1-1 game. Steven Proscia singled to start the inning and then stole second. So there you have it: runner on second and nobody out, tie game. Bunt?

Guess again. Catcher Franco Valdes showed bunt on the first pitch, then ripped a single to score Proscia. Before the inning was over, Virginia had a 4-1 lead and was on cruise control.

UM home again
Asked about the contrast in styles, O'Connor was diplomatic.

"They have to do what they have to do to win," O'Connor said. "I can't speak to why they made those decisions. Unfortunately for them it didn't work and that was fortunate for us."

O'Connor said Virginia has bunted more in the past.

"As this season progressed, we haven't bunted as much, partly because we weren't very good at it," he said. "In my evolution as a coach, you've got to try to change when things don't work. This year, it's more about swinging the bats and stealing bases."

It's a plan Virginia will continue in Omaha, while Ole Miss watches on TV, again.
 

Notebook: Rebels' bats go quiet during postseason play
David Brandt • david.brandt@clarionledger.com • June 8, 2009

OXFORD — When looking for reasons why Ole Miss couldn't quite break through to the College World Series, one reason has to rank right up at the top.

The offense disappeared.

In seven postseason games, Ole Miss had just a .274 team batting average, more than 40 points lower than its regular-season average. The Rebels also averaged less barely more than five runs per game, more than two shy of the regular season average.

The offensive frustration got worse as the postseason progressed. The Rebels scored just 12 runs over the last four games and only one on seven hits in Sunday's 5-1 season-ending loss to Virginia at Oxford-University Stadium.

"We just didn't get a lot of runs," said UM's Jordan Henry, who hit .321 in 29 postseason at-bats. "We hit some balls hard, but they made some great plays and sometimes they didn't fall."

On the flip side, UM's postseason pitching was outstanding, with a 3.09 ERA over the seven games. Sophomore Drew Pomeranz was the star, with a 2-0 record and 1.12 ERA over 24 innings. He struck out 36 and gave up only 14 hits.

Going home
For Virginia coach Brian O'Connor, there's an added bonus of going to the College World Series - he gets to go home.

O'Connor grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, which is just across the border from Omaha.

As a kid, O'Connor took in many CWS games at Rosenblatt Stadium.

"A lot will be made of that and I really don't want it to be about that. I want it to be about the kids," O'Connor said. "... This is the chance of a lifetime for these kids."

Odds and ends
The three-day Super Regional attendance was 29,646, which is the most in school history, surpassing the 26,075 that came to watch the Ole Miss-Texas series in 2005...

Sunday's single-game attendance was 10,110 - third-most in school history...

Ole Miss dropped to 19-17 in NCAA Tournament games under coach Mike Bianco. The Rebels are 41-33 all-time in NCAA Tournament play...

Henry reached base in 60 out of 63 games this season. He had a double and a walk on Sunday...

Virginia's 48 wins are a school record...

It was the 26th time this season that the Cavaliers held an opponent to two runs or less. UVA is 26-0 in those games.
 

U.Va. earns first trip to College World Series
The Associated Press
June 8, 2009
By Chris Talbot
OXFORD, Miss.

Virginia coach Brian O'Connor is headed home, and this time he's taking the Cavaliers along.

O'Connor grew up watching College World Series games by his father's side and appeared there as a player and assistant coach. Now he's finally going as a head coach after leading the gutty Cavaliers to a 5-1 win over Mississippi on Sunday in Game 3 of their nail-biting super regional.

"A lot will be made of that and I really don't want it to be about that. I want it to be about the kids," said O'Connor, who grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, just across the border from Omaha, Neb.

"I get to go home one time every year," he said. "This is the chance of a lifetime for these kids."

O'Connor played at Rosenblatt Stadium with Creighton and was an assistant coach at Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish went to Omaha in 2002 under Paul Mainieri, now the coach at LSU - Virginia's opening opponent next weekend.

The Cavaliers got to the College World Series with pitching and defense in a super regional that was tight and tense.

Matt Packer, in his third appearance of the series, and three others combined for 10 strikeouts and allowed just seven hits as the Cavaliers (48-13-1) set the school record for wins in a season. Virginia improved to 5-1 since the start of the NCAA tournament, allowing just nine earned runs.

The Cavaliers' ERA against Ole Miss was 2.33 and is now 1.50 overall since they won the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament last month. They gave up just 23 hits against the Rebels, who had a .219 batting average in the series, and struck out 26 on the way to setting a school record (567) for strikeouts in a season.

Packer pitched 3 2/3 innings, giving up just two hits and an unearned run with two strikeouts and one walk in the series, just one of several gutty turns on the mound for the Cavaliers.

O'Connor began with Robert Poutier, a fifth-year senior who hasn't started since April, and informed his staff to be ready to come on when things got tight. After allowing a run to start the first inning, the Cavaliers allowed just one runner to advance beyond second base and stranded eight Rebels. Ole Miss was 0 for 3 with runners in scoring position.

"Being tired isn't really an option at this point," Packer said. "That's not really a word we think about. All the guys who were coming out of the bullpen kind of all got it done. We've been doing that all year."

The Rebels (44-20) committed three errors and were unable to stop Virginia on the base paths. The Cavaliers stole six bases in the game and 12 in the series.

Virginia tied the game at 1 with the help of a double steal in the fourth inning.

"It seemed like every time you looked up, they were running," Ole Miss' Matt Smith said.

Then, after a botched grounder by second baseman Evan Button helped the Cavaliers rally for a 4-3 win Saturday to force Game 3, another Sunday by shortstop Kevin Mort kept a three-run burst rolling in the fourth, putting the game out of reach.

Steven Proscia started that rally with a single, then stole second and scored on Franco Valdes' single. Mort's error on a hot but routine grounder from John Barr moved Valdes to third and he scored two batters later on Tyler Cannon's sacrifice fly. Phil Gosselin then brought Barr home with a single to right.

Proscia had three hits, two stolen bases and an RBI, while John Hicks was 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run.
 

Cavaliers earn first berth to College World Series
By David Brandt
Correspondent
June 8, 2009
OXFORD, Miss.

Minutes after a wild dogpile in the middle of Oxford-University Stadium, Virginia pitcher Robert Poutier limped into the postgame press conference with a rapidly swelling left eye and a grin on his face that stretched from ear to ear.

"I think I've got a few cracked ribs, a black eye and a broken elbow," said Poutier, a fifth-year senior out of Grafton High, who was joking about the ribs and the elbow. "But the pain is well worth it."

And that's because Virginia is going to the first College World Series in program history. The Cavaliers beat Mississippi 5-1 on Sunday afternoon to take the final game of a best-of-three NCAA Super Regional, rallying for two victories after losing Friday's opener in extra innings.

Virginia (48-13-1), which broke the school wins record, will play LSU at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb., with the time and date to be announced tonight. Also in the Cavaliers' half of the bracket are Cal State Fullerton and Arkansas.

Ole Miss (44-20) had its season end in the Super Regionals for the fourth time in five seasons.

"I don't know what to say," Virginia coach Brian O'Connor said. "It's just an unbelievable accomplishment by a group of young men that stayed together the whole year."

Virginia won mainly because of another gritty pitching effort. First it was Poutier, who started for only the fifth time this season and gave up one run over 2 2/3 innings while striking out four.

Then it was Tyler Wilson (9-3), Matt Packer and Kevin Arico, who combined to throw 6 1/3 scoreless innings despite all having thrown earlier in the weekend. Packer was the biggest workhorse, pitching all three days.

"Being tired isn't really an option at this point in the year," Packer said. "It's not even a word we use."

On offense, the Cavaliers were far from a machine, but for the second day in a row they did just enough to get the win.

With the game tied at 1, Virginia broke things open in the fifth inning, using three hits and two stolen bases to piece together three runs for a 4-1 lead. Two Ole Miss errors helped the cause. Franco Valdes, Tyler Cannon and Phil Gosselin all drove home runs in the rally.

The two stolen bases in the fifth were a common theme for the weekend, as the Cavaliers ran wild. U.Va. was 6-for-6 stealing bases Sunday and stole 12 over the entire weekend.

"We saw some things, especially with their left-handers," Gosselin said. "It really helped us."

On the other side of the field, Ole Miss couldn't seem to do anything right. The Rebels got a decent start from Nathan Baker (4-3), who gave up four runs, but only two earned, over five innings.

But every attempt to get runs ended in failure, even when the ball was hit hard. In the seventh inning, the Rebels had a chance to jump back in the game when leadoff hitter Matt Snyder coaxed a walk. Then Matt Smith, the cleanup hitter, laced a line drive down the first-base line.

It would normally have been a double, but because Snyder was being held on first, Virginia's Danny Hultzen was right there to snag the line drive and step on first for the double play. O'Connor admitted luck played a part.

"Those are the kinds of things that have to happen to get to Omaha," O'Connor said.

"Fortunately for us, they went our way."

The trip to Omaha ends years of frustration for Virginia, which has risen into a power in the ACC. But for years, the Cavaliers' bid for the College World Series was stopped in regional play.

But now, they've broken through, even with an extremely young team that was lightly regarded before the season. O'Connor recalled the advice given to him after he was particularly frustrated one year after a regional loss.

"Omaha will happen when you least expect it," he said.

 

Virginia Earns First Trip to Omaha with Win at Ole Miss
By Jimmy Jones
Special to CollegeBaseballInsider.com

Jimmy Jones is the world’s greatest baseball fan cleverly disguised as a proud father of five beautiful children. He loves to write about the sport, but it is his action photography that has earned him numerous awards. He has contributed to CollegeBaseballIinsider.com for the past few seasons.

OXFORD, Miss. – Virginia set a school record with its 48th win of the season with a 5-1 pasting of Ole Miss Sunday afternoon, but the record pales in comparison to another first for its program: The Cavaliers are Omaha-bound to compete for the College World Series title.

The Cavaliers, playing in their first Super Regional, overcame a much more experienced opponent in Ole Miss, which was making its fourth Super Regional appearance in the past five seasons playing in its home park.

“What a great feeling,” Cavaliers coach Brian O’Connor said. “I am so proud of our kids for battling all year long. We came into the season with some question marks mostly related to our youth, but these kids hung together and you can see the results.”

Virginia (48-13-1) battled its way through an excellent pitching staff and was able to block out the throngs of ferociously loyal and vocal fans that set attendance records in two of the three games. And perhaps more importantly, the Cavaliers won the pre-game coin toss giving them the hammer as the home team, placing the Rebels (44-20) in an unfamiliar dugout.

Jordan Henry started the Rebels off on the fast track when he hit a routine ball that is good for a single for most players but not for the turbo-fast Henry, who cruised into second base easily. After he was bunted over by Logan Power, Cavaliers starter Robert Poutier looked as if he might pitch his way out of it by striking out Matt Snyder for out No. 2. Matt Smith (right), the hero of Game 1, lined the first pitch he saw into right field to put the Rebels ahead 1-0.

Henry almost stole a run all by himself in the third when he walked, stole second and advanced to third on a shallow fly ball on a close play at third that third baseman Steven Proscia and O’Connor protested to no avail. But Tyler Wilson (9-3) relieved and stranded runners on the corners.

Meanwhile, Ole Miss senior Nathan Baker was putting up goose eggs until giving up the tying run in the fourth.

Phil Gosselin muscled a one-out hit through the middle of the infield and then stole second without a throw. Dan Grovatt walked, and he and Gosselin pulled a double steal to place runners at second and third. Designated hitter John Hicks’ (leftt) long fly ball to right tied the game at 1.

Virginia broke the game open in the fifth on a leadoff hit by Proscia, who stole second, and a RBI single by Franco Valdes to extend his hitting streak to seven games. John Barr followed with a grounder that Rebels shortstop Kevin Mort booted, allowing Valdes to scamper to third. Barr stole second on the next pitch as the Cavaliers continued to challenge the Rebel catchers. Gosselin hit a sacrifice fly to center to make the score 4-1 Virginia.

Virginia tacked on a run in the eighth on three hits, the big blow being a double by Proscia. But the Cavaliers left two runners stranded when the Rebels appeared to benefit from a close call at first that Jarrett Parker appeared to have beaten out.

The Rebels couldn’t muster another credible threat as Virginia relievers Matt Packer, pitching for the third consecutive day, and Kevin Arico (right) closed the game out by spreading out just three hits and over the final three innings. Including the 3.1 innings thrown by Wilson, the Rebels had only five hits and no runs over the final 6.1 innings. Smith hit a shot in the sixth that was destined for the right-field corner but instead was snagged by Danny Hultzen, who stepped on first for a double play to take the air out of the Rebels for good.

“First of all, we would like to congratulate Brian [O’Connor] and his players for a well-played series and for accomplishing their goal,” Rebels coach Mike Bianco said. “I thought it was very well-played on both sides, but they just made a few more plays than we did in the series. We hit a lot of balls hard with nothing to show for it, and Virginia took full advantage of every opportunity that we gave them. They are a very good team that just simply got the best of us this weekend.”

O’Connor, who has led the Cavaliers to the NCAA postseason in each of his six years, is a native of Omaha and played at Creighton University in Omaha.

“It is a very special feeling made even more special by being among friends and family,” O’Connor said. “It will be special, and I know that both myself and my family are looking forward to the trip. I know that a lot will be made of it over the next few days.

“I wouldn’t want the focus to be taken off of those guys in the locker room though. They are the ones that made all of this happen.”

Making things even more interesting for O’Connor is that the Cavaliers will first meet LSU, coached by Paul Mainieri, in Omaha. O’Connor was an assistant for Mainieri at Notre Dame from 1995-2003 before taking the job at Virginia.

 

CWS newcomers steal spotlght
By Kendall Rogers, Yahoo! Sports
3 hours, 51 minutes ago

Virginia’s Brian O’Connor and Mississippi’s Mike Bianco entered the Oxford Super Regional with similar backgrounds.

O’Connor turned a less-than-stellar program into one of the ACC’s best. Bianco, accomplished the same feat at Ole Miss long ago.

But the parallels don’t stop there.

In the eyes of many, O’Connor hadn’t done enough with Virginia’s program before this season. Sure, the Cavaliers had five consecutive regional appearances. But what about the biggest prize? You know, a super regional berth, or better yet a trip to the College World Series.

Bianco has accomplished a lot in Oxford, but has never made the trip to Omaha.

Perhaps it was fitting the Cavaliers and Rebels split the first two games of the Oxford Super Regional.

Sunday’s series finale brought the added drama of finally validating one of the two coaches – and leaving the other to answer the questions once again.
In the end, O’Connor was the coach celebrating after a 5-1 victory to propel his Cavaliers into their first College World Series. For Bianco, it was a familiar ending.

“You don’t come to this program unless you want to be out on that stage today, so I don’t really look at the previous three super regional trips to be similar besides not winning,” Bianco said. “It’s kind of hard to put things in perspective for obvious reasons, but we’re here to play for a trip to Omaha and to win a title.”

The Rebels lost the 2005 Oxford Super Regional to Texas and the Longhorns went on to win the national title. In 2006 it was Miami ousting the Rebels in the super regional round. In 2007, Arizona State ended Ole Miss’ dreams of Omaha.

This one, though, was flat-out gut wrenching. The Rebels felt they deserved a national seed. Luck still went their way as Virginia won the Irvine Regional, which allowed the Rebels to host the super regional.

Luck again appeared to be on Ole Miss’s side when Matt Smith hit a game-ending home run to win Friday’s opening game.

But when it mattered most, the Rebels once again folded under the pressure.

Virginia took advantage and created a new path and attitude for its program.

One team is headed to Omaha. Another is once again searching for answers.

 

Cavs Are Moving On to Omaha
U-Va. Earns Berth In World Series: Virginia 5, Mississippi 1
By Scott Cacciola
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, June 8, 2009

OXFORD, Miss., June 7 -- The Virginia baseball team spent some quiet moments during pregame warmups on Sunday doing visualization drills in the outfield at Oxford-University Stadium. Coach Brian O'Connor started the ritual when he arrived in Charlottesville during the summer of 2003, and he thinks of it as one last opportunity for his players to clear their heads of any clutter that could affect them during the game.

So with a chance to advance to their first College World Series, the Cavaliers lined up in a pair of neat rows, rested their bats against their shoulders, bowed their heads and imagined the possibilities.

Dream became reality by the end of the afternoon, as Virginia ousted Mississippi from the NCAA tournament with a 5-1 victory in the decisive game of their best-of-three super regional. And the Cavaliers, who formed a massive dogpile in the infield after the final out, are Omaha-bound.

"I think I've got a few cracked ribs, black eye, broken elbow," said starting pitcher Robert Poutier, a senior who was somewhere at the bottom of the celebration. "But the pain is definitely worth it."

Virginia (48-13-1) stole six bases, limited Mississippi to seven hits and capitalized on an error to break open a 1-1 game with three runs in the fourth. Freshman Steven Proscia led off with a single, stole second and then scored on junior Franco Valdes's single up the middle. Sophomore John Barr then grounded into what could have been a double play, but the ball skipped past shortstop Kevin Mort.

The error was enormous. Junior Tyler Cannon scored Valdes on a sacrifice fly, and Barr came around on a single by sophomore Phil Gosselin.

"They bunched some hits together, and the last two days we couldn't stop them on the base paths," Mississippi Coach Mike Bianco said. "Something we've been able to do all year is control the steal. But they were too good."

It was the most electric and inhospitable environment the Cavaliers had ever experienced. Sellout crowds packed the stadium all weekend. Some Mississippi students even camped out overnight to get the best seats on the knoll beyond center field, eager to see if Mississippi (44-20), making its fourth super regional appearance in five seasons, could earn its first trip to the College World Series since 1972.

But the Cavaliers have proven to be a resilient bunch. They claimed the ACC tournament championship after finishing the regular season in sixth place, then rolled through the NCAA tournament regional at UC Irvine -- regarded as the toughest in the bracket -- without a loss.

The super regional featured some drama, and Mississippi claimed Friday's Game 1 with a walk-off home run in the 12th inning. The Rebels were five outs from clinching the series Saturday, but Virginia scored two unearned runs in the eighth for a 4-3 victory to force a third game.

Asked after Saturday's game about his pitching rotation, O'Connor said, "I don't know where we go from here." Senior Andrew Carraway had been penciled in as the Cavaliers' Game 3 starter, but O'Connor summoned him from the bullpen during a crucial moment in Game 2. It was a move born of desperation: A loss on Saturday would have ended Virginia's season.

By Sunday, O'Connor knew he was running short on starters, the grind of the tournament taking an inevitable toll, so he hoped to manufacture a victory by committee. He started Poutier, whose NCAA tournament debut was brief. He gave up a run-scoring single to Mississippi's Matt Smith in the first, then gave way to right-handed reliever Tyler Wilson with two outs in the third. Wilson struck out Smith to strand a pair of runners, and that established a theme for Virginia's relievers. Wilson, junior Matt Packer and sophomore Kevin Arico combined to pitch 6 1/3 scoreless innings.

"My friend told me that Omaha will happen when you least expect it," O'Connor said. "This group of men really accomplished something special."