The Virginia baseball team just keeps rolling along, winning last night against Coppin State to continue a five-game stretch in which it has outscored its opponents 65-5. The Cavaliers will play again tonight, facing Bucknell for the start of a three-game weekend series. Despite Virginia's recent success, Friday's game will be the sixth in a stretch of eight games in nine days for the Cavaliers. The team hopes fatigue will not take its toll on the team.
"Eight games in nine days is pretty rough, physically and mentally, but we're going to go at it hard," freshman pitcher Neal Davis said. "It will be nice to have a day off and rest a little bit, but we're anxious to get out there on the field. This is what we've prepared for all fall and we're just ready to go at it. Everybody's got to get used to it, so it's good to learn it early in the year."
Virginia hopes its freshman pitchers will continue to contribute to the team's success. Matt Packer, Jeff Lorick, and Davis have started four games, compiling a 3-0 record with a 1.42 earned-run average among them. Packer will start the third game in the Bucknell series. The Cavaliers will go with the usual one-two punch of junior Sean Doolittle and sophomore Jacob Thompson in the first two games.
"JT [Jacob Thompson] and Doc [Sean Doolittle] have been great," Davis said. "They always lead by example. If you ever have a problem or question, they're always the first ones there. If you ever make a mistake, they're always patting you on the back, saying 'I did that last year.' They're two of the best guys to look up to that I've ever been teammates with."
On offense, freshman shortstop Greg Miclat hopes to continue his torrid pace of late. Miclat was named ACC Player of the Week last week after going 9 for 10 against George Washington. He had three triples, scored three runs, had five runs batted in and stole four bases.
"Greg Miclat is a different player than he was before," Virginia coach Brian O'Connor said. "I think the difference in him is the physical strength. There were times last year when his body got fatigued, but physically he's a better player now. He's squaring the ball up really well and the ball is coming off his bat hard."
Bucknell, however, is a worthy opponent. The Bison reached 20 wins for the 10th time in program history last year, and tied for first place in the Patriot League. Bucknell is led by senior co-captains pitcher/outfielder Ryan Gryskevicz and pitcher Matt Curry. Gryskevicz posted a .338 batting average and 26 runs batted last year en route to being named to the All-Patriot League Second Team. Curry notched three wins last year along with a 3.69 ERA. Junior relief pitcher Jason Buursma was named to the preseason watch list for the National College Baseball Writers' Association Stopper of the Year Award, given annually to the top reliever in college baseball.
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