Virginia baseball as it exists today would be nowhere near the same without Coach Brian O’Connor. Before his arrival, the Cavaliers had only won the ACC twice in program history. What’s more, they had never been to the College World Series and had only reached the NCAA Tournament three times.
But since O’Connor took over in 2004, he has transformed Virginia into a national superpower. He presides over a program that now has seven CWS appearances, highlighted by a national title in 2015. The Cavaliers are now consistently a top program in the nation, making deep runs nearly every year and producing MLB talent. So with O’Connor’s 900th win against Stanford March 29, it only feels right to look back at the rise of the program, from win one to win 900.
Win No. 1: Feb. 13, 2004, 10-7 at North Carolina A&T
It all started on a Friday afternoon in the middle of February. O’Connor’s first team had some serious MLB talent, with players like sophomore infielder Ryan Zimmerman and junior infielder Mark Reynolds eventually combining for 582 home runs in the big leagues. Zimmerman was the star of this day in 2004, having three runs batted in during his multi-hit performance. Junior pitcher Andrew Dobies picked up the win on the mound, allowing only three-hits in five innings. With this talent, Virginia made their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1996.
Win No. 100: March 12, 2006, 6-3 at Georgia Tech
O’Connor’s first big milestone came in a win that avoided a sweep from the top ranked Yellow Jackets. Sophomore two-way player Sean Doolittle stole the show that day, collecting two hits at the plate while also throwing six innings on the mound and only allowing two runs. Sophomore outfielder Brandon Guyer had three hits in this game, driving in one run. The 2006 season marked the Cavaliers’ third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, the first such occurrence in program history. Doolittle, alongside Guyer, would go on to have the best MLB careers of the squad, with Doolittle winning a World Series with the Washington Nationals in 2019.
Win No. 200: March 30, 2008, 2-1 vs Virginia Tech
The big 200 came in the final win of a sweep of the Hokies. Freshman outfielder Jarrett Parker led the way with three hits — the only Cavalier to have multiple hits in the game. Stellar pitching really carried Virginia in this game though, as both junior pitcher Andrew Carraway and sophomore pitcher Matt Packer were lights out on the mound. This season as a whole was a rollercoaster for the Cavaliers. They won their first 11 games, but ended up just 39-23 for the season with a .500 conference record. Virginia’s season in 2008 ended in the regionals.
Win No. 300: April 27, 2010, 6-3 vs Coastal Carolina
O’Connor’s 300th win came in a highly anticipated matchup that saw the fourth-ranked Chanticleers come to Charlottesville for a midweek game against the top ranked Cavaliers. Virginia held the lead for the entirety of the game, with a second inning grand slam from junior outfielder Phil Gosselin. The 2010 squad’s season was historic, with the team winning 51 games. However, ultimately, they fell to Oklahoma in a three-game series during the Super Regional phase of the NCAA Tournament, falling just short of a second consecutive CWS trip.
Win No. 400: April 25, 2012, 7-5 at VCU
This milestone is the second of four total milestones that were earned against an in-state opponent, and it came off the back of a ninth inning go-ahead home run from freshman outfielder Derek Fisher. Another star of the game was sophomore infielder Stephen Bruno, who had three hits, two of which were doubles. Junior infielder Chris Taylor is the most notable name from that year’s team — he would go on to have a long MLB career and even be named the 2017 NLCS MVP. This Virginia squad was hoping to reach a third CWS in four years, but they would unfortunately fall in their own regional.
Win No. 500: May 9, 2014, 4-3 vs Georgia Tech
O’Connor was the second fastest coach in ACC history to reach this mark, doing it in 672 games. This big win was reached in a late-season contest that started a three-game sweep of the Yellow Jackets. The 2014 Cavalier squad was special — they would make the program’s first ever national championship appearance, where they eventually lost to Vanderbilt in three games. Eventual MLB players like sophomore pitcher Josh Sborz and freshman catcher Matt Thaiss were on the roster, but it was junior outfielder Mike Papi that won the game for Virginia that day with a two-out, two-run single to take the lead.
Win No. 600: Feb. 21, 2017, 9-7 vs VMI
O’Connor hit his 600th win as a national champion, having finally climbed the mountaintop in 2015. In this game, the Cavaliers were led by junior utilityman Ernie Clement who had a couple big hits to overcome an early Keydet lead. This victory gave Virginia its fourth consecutive win to open the season, a streak that would last 10 games. This season was one of the last with members of the 2015 season’s National Championship team, but it would end much earlier than that one with a loss in the NCAA Regionals to Dallas Baptist.
Win No. 700: May 17, 2019, 5-3 at Virginia Tech
With this victory, O’Connor became the ninth ACC coach to reach the 700-win milestone. This milestone came in a series-clinching victory over the program’s biggest rival, which gave a relatively disappointing 32-24 season a sweeter ending. In this game, a four-run seventh inning capped off by a two-run double from sophomore outfielder Brendan Rivoli helped the Cavaliers snatch a victory from the Hokies. This Virginia squad was relatively young but boasted future MLB players like freshman infielder Zach Gelof and sophomore pitcher Andrew Abbott, who both played in the game.
Win No. 800: March 5, 2023, 16-6 versus Rhode Island
Eleven Cavaliers were on the roster for both wins 800 and 900, with four of them making an appearance in this demolition of the Rams. The Cavaliers totaled 16 hits in this game, with six players having multi-hit days. O’Connor became the eighth coach to record their 800th win at an ACC school and had Virginia off to an 11-0 start in a season where they would head to the CWS for the sixth time in school history. This season, junior catcher Kyle Teel hit above .400, while junior infielder Jake Gelof set the school record for home runs in a season.
Win No. 900: March 29, 2025, 9-8 against Stanford
Finally we arrive at the present day. O’Connor is now a legend of the program and the sport as a whole. He has firmly etched his name into the record books as one of the best coaches in college baseball history. Since win number 800, O’Connor has made two more CWS appearances in 2023 and 2024. This win was earned with a 10th inning walkoff double to right field from junior outfielder Aidan Teel, finishing a comeback that started when the Cavaliers were down two runs in the ninth inning. This win capped off a sweep against a new ACC opponent and potentially revived a season that started incredibly rocky for Virginia.
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