The top-ranked Virginia baseball team will play host to No. 8 Clemson during this weekend's premier matchup in college baseball.
Hoping to add onto a six-game winning streak, Virginia (18-3, 5-1 ACC) enters tonight's game after defeating Marshall 6-3 midweek and sweeping Boston College in a three-game series last weekend. Meanwhile, the Tigers (17-4, 6-0 ACC) come to Davenport Field after a two-game losing streak, dropping two midweek games at home to Elon.
Despite Clemson's recent losses, Virginia coach Brian O'Connor and his team must play hard against a team that won a series against then-No. 9 South Carolina and swept a three-game series against Wright State and then-No. 30 N.C. State earlier this season.
Moreover, Clemson's strong lineup adds to the threat posed to the Cavaliers' recent success. Clemson's junior southpaw Casey Harman and sophomore southpaw Will Lamb, Friday and Saturday starters for the Tigers, will come into this weekend's series with 1.86 and 2.08 ERAs, respectively.
"They're very talented - they have a lot of really good left-handed hitters. [Additionally,] their No. 1 and 2 starters are left-handed," O'Connor said.
Because the middle of the Virginia lineup has struggled against left-handed pitchers this season, the Cavalier players know they will have to step up to emerge victorious.
The Cavaliers, who collectively have hit an impressive .325 and notched a 2.00 ERA during their past six games, hope to extend hitting and pitching balance they have shown prior to this weekend's series.
Sophomore first baseman John Hicks expressed confidence in the team's ability to do just that.
"We're clicking, definitely. It seems like if one guy's struggling, everybody else is going to pick him up," he said. "That's the whole concept of us - we're a team."
Against Marshall, senior Tyler Cannon hit 4-for-4 and junior John Barr 2-for-3, while six Virginia pitchers combined to allow three runs on six hits. Junior closer Kevin Arico, after poor outing issues last Saturday against Boston College, recorded a quick two-strikeout save.
Virginia will look to sophomore ace Danny Hultzen to maintain team-wide momentum against Clemson's Harman today at 6 p.m.
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