Baseball Features 
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Scott Silverstein took the mound at Davenport Field for the last time Sunday night. The stadium clock read 8:55 when he handed the ball to his skipper for the last time in orange and blue. It didn't end the way he would have wanted and yet, I doubt he'd change a thing.
If Virginia has learned anything in its last two Super Regionals in Charlottesville, it is that you need a lot of offensive firepower to top teams wearing shades of red. In 2011, Oklahoma ousted UVa from the NCAA Tournament with 10-7 and 11-0 victories. This time around, Mississippi State's bats bounced the Cavaliers to the tune of 11-6 on Saturday and 6-5 in the two-day series finale.
Virginia's identity for the last decade has been world-class pitching, consistent fundamental defense, and an above-average, execution-driven offense. And when the Hoos live up to two-thirds and sometime even one-third of their identity, they win more often than not. When they fail to deliver on all three aspects as they did against the Bulldogs, however, they sometimes can win but not against a quality SEC opponent like MSU.
Starting pitcher Brandon Waddell got roughed up early and often in the opener of the 2013 Charlottesville Super Regional as Mississippi State (47-18) pounded out 20 hits, a season high by a Virginia opponent and lit up the scoreboard in an 11-6 win. The loss means the Cavaliers will need to win games Sunday night and Monday afternoon to return to the College World Series for the third time in five seasons.
When the postseason rolls around in college baseball, the routine automatically changes for teams. Gone are classes and exams. Gone are mid-week games against non-conference teams. Gone are graduation plans for seniors. The shift in weekly dynamics requires some planning by the coaches.
After scoring just four runs in the first two games of the Charlottesville Regional, the Virginia offense came to life Sunday against Elon. The Hoos put up double-digit runs for the first time since a 10-4 win over North Carolina on May 16. The top-seeded Cavaliers rolled to the 11-3 victory to claim the region title.
The Virginia baseball team is at it again. After a brief postseason stint a year ago, the Cavaliers returned to their winning ways in the NCAA Tournament after taking care of business this weekend. UVa took down Elon on Sunday night 10-3 to complete a three-game sprint through the NCAA Tournament's Charlottesville Regional. The Hoos have reached the Super Region round four times in the last five seasons.
The only good news about Virginia posting just four runs in the first two games of Charlottesville Regional play is that the Cavalier defense has given up just one run in 18 innings. For the second game in a row, UVa got a solid outing from its starting pitcher and good support from the bullpen to advance to the championship round of the Charlottesville Regional with a 2-0 shutout win against Elon.
Army right-handed pitcher Chris Rowley scattered 8 hits over 7 innings while surrendering just 2 runs in Friday's NCAA Tournament opener for the Charlottesville Regional. But UVa starter Brandon Waddell was a little better. While tossing 8 strikeouts, Waddell worked 7 innings and gave up the lone Army run in the fifth as Virginia prevailed 2-1.
Virginia catcher Nate Irving scored the winning run against Army on Friday, but he wasn't even supposed to be on base at the time. When Irving stepped into the batter's box, after all, he had instructions to execute a sacrifice bunt. He ended up with a key hit and the go-ahead run in UVa's 2-1 victory instead.
When the Charlottesville Region opens play Friday in the NCAA Tournament, the Virginia coaching staff will be prepared. The coaches spent time this week dissecting the three teams coming to Charlottesville. They worked through rosters, statistics, and video in an effort to prepare scouting reports for Army, UNC Wilmington, and Elon.
The Virginia baseball program has remained so consistent over the last decade that coach Brian O'Connor has easily outdone his movie namesake. While the Fast and the Furious franchise with street racer cop Brian O'Conner topped box office charts with its sixth installment this past weekend, O'Connor's Cavaliers picked up their seventh NCAA Regional hosting bid and 10th straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
After Georgia Tech's Kyle Wren led off the first inning in Thursday's game with a triple and it was followed by back-to-back singles, the last thing anyone was thinking was that a two-run, 8-2/3 inning win for Scott Silverstein was about to occur in Durham, North Carolina. On the heels of the Virginia Tech barrage the Hoos suffered Wednesday, after all, it looked similar to the disastrous second inning from the day before. Shows how much 'anyone' knows.
The Virginia baseball team opened ACC Tournament play in Durham, North Carolina, with a 10-1 loss to Virginia Tech on Wednesday. First baseman Jared King said the key now is for the club to put this game behind them and move on to the next outing, which comes Thursday in pool play. UVa faces Georgia Tech at 11 a.m.
The Virginia baseball team nailed down a three-game sweep of Florida State over the weekend. Kyle Crockett finished off Sunday's win with 4 strikeouts in the final 2 innings as UVa won 5-2. Check out 19 images of the final victory in the series.
As an admitted UVa fan, I try to put on an objective hat when covering sports for TheSabre.com but let me say it's difficult to watch my favorite club lose two NCAA Tournament games in the same day - each by a lone run with the tying run in scoring position. Brutal. That's what that is.
Top-seed Virginia advanced to the winner's bracket of the Charlottesville Regional with a 9-1 win over No. 4 seed Army on Saturday. All-ACC pitcher Branden Kline claimed the win by holding the Academy to one earned run over 5.2 innings. UVa faces No. 3 Appalachian State on Sunday at 3 p.m. The Mountaineers squeaked out a 5-4 win over No. 2 Oklahoma on Saturday evening.
GREENSBORO, N.C. - The two teams that met last season for the ACC title faced off again Saturday and while neither team will be taking home conference championship hardware in 2012, the game still had meaning for Virginia and Florida State. The Hoos wanted to erase the taste of a beat down at the hands of Georgia Tech on Friday and the Seminoles hoped to avoid going into the NCAA Tournament on a three-game losing skid. After being swept earlier in the season by FSU, the tournament rematch belonged to UVa as the Cavaliers prevailed 7-0.
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Virginia coach Brian O'Connor's assessment of his team's play Friday against Georgia Tech at the ACC Tournament was simple and accurate. "That was just a good, old-fashioned butt-kicking is what it was," he said. The Yellow Jackets won 17-5 in a game that ended via the ACC's mercy rule.
The Virginia baseball team completed its 2012 regular season last Saturday by dropping the final game to Maryland 6-5 after winning the series with two earlier wins in College Park. The first win against the Terps ensured that the Hoos would finish second in the Coastal Division of the ACC. The Cavaliers are the No. 4 seed in the ACC Tournament in Greensboro, N.C. and face Clemson on Thursday to open pool play. Here is a brief preview of the Virginia opponents in Pool A in the order the Hoos play them.
The Virginia baseball team came within one out of a home sweep over Georgia Tech this past weekend. But, like the UC Irvine Super Regional game last year, baseball is a game of 27 outs, not 26, and the Hoos lost the finale 5-4 in 10 innings. Now, the Hoos travel to College Park to face the Maryland Terrapins in the final ACC series of the 2012 season beginning on Thursday at 6 p.m. Here is a brief scouting report on the Terps.
The Virginia baseball team defeated the High Point Panthers 12-3 on Wednesday night at Davenport Field. This weekend, the Cavaliers host Georgia Tech in their final home ACC series, beginning on Friday night at 6 p.m. and continuing on Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. on both days. Here is a brief scouting report on the Yellow Jackets.
The Virginia baseball team is coming off a nine-day break for final exams and will face the High Point Panthers on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. at Davenport Field, weather permitting. Prior to the exam break, the Hoos were on a roll with a first-ever sweep of Miami in Florida to extend their current winning streak to seven games. Here is a brief scouting report on the High Point Panthers.
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