After earning the No. 12 overall seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Virginia baseball hosted Pennsylvania in the first game of the Charlottesville Regional at Disharoon Park Friday afternoon. The Cavaliers (42-15, 18-12 ACC) arrived fresh off an early exit from the ACC Tournament in pool play, while the Quakers (24-24, 11-10 Ivy League) secured a berth in the NCAA Tournament by way of a miracle conference championship run. While Virginia failed to produce to its typically high offensive standards, the Cavaliers were rock solid on the mound and secured an understated 4-2 victory.
Graduate right-handed pitcher Joe Savino kicked off the regional. While he struggled exactly a week prior in the ACC Tournament against No. 8 overall Florida State, Savino has otherwise been reliably steady since returning from injury in April. True to form, he tossed a pristine opening frame to the delight of the home crowd — though Virginia’s bats were silenced in turn in a quiet first inning.
The top of the second saw another three straight batters retired by Savino — though he benefited from stellar defense by freshman infielder Eric Becker and a leaping grab from graduate outfielder Bobby Whalen to retire the side. Meanwhile, the heart of the Cavaliers’ lineup could not be contained in the bottom half of the second. After a leadoff single by freshman infielder Henry Ford and a walk by sophomore outfielder Harrison Didawick, sophomore infielder Henry Godbout hit a home run into the left-field bleachers to give Virginia an early 3-0 advantage.
Now pitching with a cushion, Savino racked up his fifth strikeout in the top of the third while Becker snagged a hard-hit line drive down the third base line to preserve his perfect start through three innings. On the mound for the Quakers, senior right-handed pitcher Cole Zaffiro remained composed after relenting the home run, neutralizing the Cavaliers in the bottom of the third with the score holding at 3-0.
The dam broke for Pennsylvania in the fourth as Savino finally allowed a leadoff single. Emboldened, the Quakers peppered the shallow outfield of Disharoon Park to chip away at the lead, scoring twice in the process. Now only narrowly ahead, Virginia’s offense began to stall in crucial situations. Zaffiro loaded the bases for the Cavaliers with two walks and a hit batter, but Virginia failed to convert the opportunity into runs.
After getting touched up in the fourth, Savino once again retired the side in the fifth with two more strikeouts. However, another offensive opportunity fell through the cracks for the Cavaliers when runners on first and second were hung out to dry on a Pennsylvania double play.
Savino lasted another three batters before admirably bowing out for junior right-handed pitcher Chase Hungate, who finished the top of the sixth inning without issue — aided by a spectacular lunging snag by junior outfielder Casey Saucke. In the bottom of the sixth, Virginia saw runners reach scoring position but again failed to capitalize. A failed bunt attempt by Godbout turned into a pop-out and was emblematic of Cavaliers’ struggles as their thin lead hung in the balance.
Hungate returned to cruise through the seventh. Then, finally, the Cavaliers pushed across another run on the back of junior infielder Griff O’Ferrall, who opportunistically singled, stole and advanced on a passed ball. Junior utility player Ethan Anderson floated a hit down the right field line to double the lead to 4-2. However, Anderson was later stranded on third base himself, keeping the Quakers within striking distance.
Hungate yielded a leadoff single in the top of the eighth but bore down and emphatically retired the next three batters, encouraged by the home crowd which had steadily grown throughout the afternoon. In the bottom of the eighth inning, with runners on second and third, Virginia was once again stifled — this time due to outstanding Pennsylvania defense on a sharp ground ball down the right side.
Hungate returned for a final dominant frame in the top of the ninth, inducing three straight outs to secure a massive 3.1 inning save. Savino earned the win, tossing a season-high 5.2 innings, allowing just three hits, two earned runs and a walk, while striking out eight batters. Hungate’s extended relief was crucial as well, not just to Friday’s victory, but towards the remainder of the regional, as Virginia will have an otherwise fresh bullpen looking ahead.
“Chase Hungate was outstanding,” Coach Brian O’Connor said. “Chase has done the job for this team all year long. When it was time to go to him, he was fantastic, pounding the strike zone, doing what he does — executing.”
With pitching and defense under control, the Cavaliers will seek to be more opportunistic at the plate after stranding 10 total batters Friday, many of which were in scoring position. However, one of the nation’s top offenses has risen to its competition level time and time again this season.
“Certainly there were a number of offensive opportunities that we didn’t capitalize on,” O’Connor said. “We’re not perfect, and that’s a credit to Penn … It doesn’t matter how you win, you just have to find a way and that was a total team effort.”
Virginia will return to Disharoon Park Saturday at 6 p.m. to take on Mississippi State, winners of a 5-2 extra-innings thriller over St. John’s in the second game of the Charlottesville Regional. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network.
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