With a little under three weeks left in softball season, the Cavaliers are looking to make a late push to improve their postseason credentials.
While a 16-21 record might seem to indicate the Cavaliers have not done much to help themselves, Virginia is 5-3 in the ACC and believes a strong finish can put the squad in position to make a run through the ACC Tournament, and possibly, into the Regional Tournament. But before getting that far, the Cavaliers need to get back over .500 to qualify for a postseason birth.
With that in mind, Virginia hosts a doubleheader against Longwood (22-20) today, starting at 3 p.m. at The Park. A sweep today would go a long way to helping the Cavaliers climb back over .500 on the season.
"This week's games are really important for us," Virginia coach Cheryl Sprangel said. "With them, we can get back to close to .500, which is really important for us. I think we have to come out and really go after them hard."
Virginia continued its recent trend of playing better against ACC competition than against non-conference foes this weekend, when then Cavaliers took two of three games from ACC rival Maryland, while dropping two home games to Towson. Virginia hopes to change that pattern this week against Longwood, and then in another home doubleheader against Liberty Wednesday.
"We can't take any team lightly," said sophomore pitcher Coty Tolar, who is 7-9 on the season with a team-leading ERA of 2.35. "We've been stepping up in the ACC, but when we are playing teams that aren't as good, we aren't shutting the door."
The Cavaliers will look to shut the door on a Longwood squad that comes to Charlottesville today having won eight of its last 12 games. The Lancers are led offensively by junior Shamana Washington, an outfielder who is hitting .319, and a pair of freshmen, Caitlin Hooe and Ryan Washington, who are hitting .355 and .341, respectively.
Senior Jen Steele, however, is the most prolific player for the Lancers. Steele was named the NCAA Division I Independent Softball Pitcher for the week of March 17 after going 4-0 in the University of San Diego Tournament, which the Lancers won. Steele is the ace of the Longwood pitching staff, having amassed a 15-11 record with a 2.20 ERA. In addition, Steele is a crucial hitter for Longwood, batting .309 for the season from the clean-up spot.
Virginia leads the all-time series 6-3 against Longwood, but hasn't played the Lancers since the fall 2001 season.
In unusual fashion, the Cavaliers are playing this week's non-conference games with one eye on the grand scheme of things. But Sprangel knows you have to crawl before you can walk and that today's doubleheader is important for Virginia.
"If we keep doing decently in the ACC, the one thing we have to look at is that we have to have a .500 record," Sprangel said. "That's why these games Tuesday and Wednesday are important to us"
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