The game had been a back-and-forth affair. No. 23 Virginia and Maryland, locked in a close battle. Old rivals going run for run.
In the eighth inning, junior infielder Luke Hanson had a clutch home run. That should have been the dagger.
Spoiler alert — it was not.
Junior right-handed pitcher Ryan Osinski surrendered a flurry of runs, and suddenly the game was tied after a wild pitch.
In a bizarre twist of fate, it was a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning that won the game for the Cavaliers (10-5, 1-2 ACC). Junior infielder Henry Godbout got on base, was advanced by a pair of groundouts, and suddenly, sprinted home on a pitch gone awry.
"Great college baseball game," Coach Brian O'Connor said. "It's interesting that they tie the game on a wild pitch, and we win the game on a wild pitch."
The victory highlighted that there are few universal truths, especially in baseball. One truth however, is as reliable as they come — the absolute truth that change is inevitable, at least to some extent.
That notion was displayed in the form of a rivalry renewed for Virginia Tuesday, as it took on the Terrapins (8-8, 1-2 Big Ten) at Virginia Credit Union Stadium in Fredericksburg, Va. — and the Cavaliers emerged victorious with a 7-6 win. The victory was an important one, especially given the context of this once-regular series.
For over 100 years, Virginia and the Terrapins dueled on the baseball diamond almost every single year, for a total of 193 matchups. The historic rivalry was a staple of ACC baseball — until Maryland departed for the Big Ten back in 2014. The Cavaliers have not faced their former nemesis in the regular season since 2013.
Virginia has since encountered Maryland on other occasions though, namely in crucial postseason showdowns — when the Cavaliers dispatched the Terrapins from the NCAA Tournament in 2014 and 2015. That most recent contest in 2015 was especially noteworthy, as Virginia completed a sweep in the Charlottesville Super Regional to earn a spot at the College World Series.
The 2015 season, of course, culminated in a national championship. And 10 years later, a lot has changed for both the Cavaliers and their old rival. The last time these programs squared off, Maryland was led by Coach John Szefc — who now leads a different rival, Virginia Tech. Notably, the Terrapins have endured significant coaching turnover, as they have had five different head coaches since 2004.
In contrast, O’Connor has been Virginia’s only head coach in that same timeframe. What has changed for Virginia, however, is the Cavaliers’ performance thus far in 2025. Instead of the usual business of steamrolling competition — which was the expectation for a team ranked No. 2 nationally in the preseason rankings — Virginia has started slowly.
The Cavaliers lost their opening ACC series to Boston College this past weekend, and subsequently tumbled down the rankings to No. 23. Virginia was in dire need of a victory. So was Maryland. Something had to give. One team would change the course of their season — at least in the short term — and the other would continue fumbling through a difficult early-season stretch.
Virginia, of course, conquered the Terrapins once again. For the 113th time since 1899, to be exact. After a 10-year break in this head-to-head series, the Cavaliers are still superior to their old counterpart up north.
Clearly, it turns out some things do not change.
The triumph was rather shaky, but at the end of the day, O’Connor’s bunch got the job done.
Junior pitcher Bradley Hodges earned the start and threw two hitless innings — albeit with three walks. His appearance may have been brief, but it was certainly noteworthy.
Last season, Hodges threw just 36 pitches before he suffered an injury on his throwing arm. He then underwent Tommy John surgery and missed the remainder of the 2024 campaign. Regardless of whatever role he plays in Virginia’s pitching staff, his return is a welcome upgrade.
However, he left a runner on first base for graduate pitcher Alex Markus to inherit. Markus promptly surrendered a triple, and the run batted in was tallied against Hodges. Now trailing 0-1, Markus was able to retire three straight Terrapins to keep the game within reach.
After Markus’ stint, O’Connor trotted out junior left-hander Evan Blaco in the top of the fourth inning. Blanco, like Hodges, is working his way back from injury. Tuesday, the former performed well — keeping Maryland off the scoreboard.
Right on cue, Virginia’s offense woke up in the bottom of the fourth inning. Consecutive singles from junior outfielders Aidan Teel and Harrison Didawick finally put pressure on the Terrapins and freshman pitcher Jake Yeager.
Next up, junior catcher Trey Wells continued the threat by advancing the runners on a sacrifice bunt. But when freshman outfielder James Nunnallee got his turn at the plate, chaos ensued. Nunnallee reached on a fielder’s choice, and got to first base safely. At the same time, Teel sprinted home from third base and attempted to vault himself over the catcher.
Teel was out, but Didawick kept running — and reached third base. On the next at-bat, Nunnallee presented a half-hearted steal attempt, which captured Maryland’s attention. Nunnallee was caught in a rundown, but Didawick scored before Nunnallee was tagged. Following the schemed play, the score was tied at 1-1 after four innings.
Unfortunately, the pitching carousel continued. Graduate right-hander Wes Arrington threw 1.1 innings — and left two runners on base — then senior left-hander Blake Barker got a turn. Barker quickly loaded the bases after he allowed a single, and then allowed a run via a sacrifice fly.
Barker continued to struggle, as he allowed an RBI single and then loaded the bases for a second time as he drilled sophomore infielder Michael Iannazzo in the head with a fastball. Iannazzo laid on the ground for several minutes as every player on the field kneeled in respect for the injured Terrapin. Thankfully, Innazzo was able to walk off the field with assistance from an entourage of trainers.
That would mark the end of Barker’s disastrous outing. O’Connor turned to his sixth pitcher in six innings as sophomore right-hander Drew Koenen entered the game — and tossed a scoreless frame.
In the bottom of the sixth, Teel and Didawick eked out consecutive walks. That was the end of Yeager’s outing, as the Cavaliers finally forced him out of the game.
Sensing an opportunity, Teel and Didawick changed the course of the game. They perfectly executed a double steal, putting two runners in scoring position with no outs. Wells responded by smacking a line drive that was dropped by sophomore utilityman Chris Hacopian, which plated Teel.
Sophomore infielder Eric Becker continued the party — smashing a two-RBI single, which gave Virginia a 4-3 advantage. Hanson’s home run added on, generating a 6-3 lead.
However, the Cavaliers were in for an extended battle. Osinski allowed a trio of runs, but thankfully, Virginia grinded out the close win.
“We played good, sound, fundamental baseball,” O’Connor said. “And we need more of that.”
For now, the Cavaliers have rebounded nicely. A 10-5 start is still well below preseason expectations, but any victory against a Big Ten opponent is valuable. Especially since Virginia has to travel across the country to take on California this weekend.
In the long and tiresome journey of a college baseball season, there are still dozens of games left to play. And while the Cavaliers cannot undo a frustrating start to its season, it can certainly change the narrative on any given gameday — especially by ruining the evening of an old nemesis.
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