Wish they all could be California, wish they all could be California, wish they all could be California teams.
The Virginia baseball team may have that modified version of the Beach Boys’ classic on repeat in the clubhouse the past several years. Since 2009, after all, the Hoos are 10-1 against California teams in the NCAA Tournament. San Diego State joined that list in a second spot when UVa won the Saturday night matchup of the Lake Elsinore Regional, 3-1. Virginia’s recent run of success against teams from the opposite coast started with a 5-1 victory against SDSU and Stephen Strasburg in 2009.
The Cavaliers are 2-0 in the double-elimination regional bracket and will face the San Diego State-Southern Cal winner (6 p.m.) on Sunday night at 10 p.m. The game can be viewed with ESPN3.
“Here we are, we have a chance to play for a Regional Championship,” UVa coach Brian O’Connor said. “We’ve been in this scenario quite a bit – I think seven of the last nine years we’ve been in the regional finals – so that’s a testament to these players, how hard they play, and how they figure out ways to win and grind it out this time of the year.”
Veteran outfielder Joe McCarthy played a huge role in the outcome for the Hoos, who trailed 1-0 entering the bottom of the fifth inning. Just moments after Pavin Smith registered the second out of the inning trying to steal second base, McCarthy undercut an inside pitch and lifted it beyond the over-sized right field wall for a home run. Playing in just his 22nd game of the season after back surgery, the junior had yet to hit a homer this season before that pitch sailed into the night. McCarthy entered the game with a .224 batting average, but went 1-2 with two runs scored in the win.
McCarthy also started the decisive eighth inning with a four-pitch walk. He moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and then scored the go-ahead run when Ernie Clement chopped a single just over the shortstop’s head. Virginia eventually added another run when Adam Haseley sent a triple into right center and then scored on a fielding error on a fullcount ground ball from Daniel Pinero, who set up the key inning with two huge defensive plays in the top half of the frame.
Playing through the winner’s bracket of the double elimination regional bracket is a significant advantage, but how Virginia got there is just as important this season. With some concerns about starting pitching depth and some shaky bullpen moments over the last month, the Hoos really wanted – and likely needed – quality starts from Connor Jones and Brandon Waddell. Jones delivered Friday night in a 6-1 victory against USC when he allowed only five hits and two walks in 7.2 innings of work. Waddell followed suit on Saturday when he allowed only four hits and two walks in 7.1 innings of work. For Waddell, it was his best start of the season.
Waddell made his 49th career start and seventh career NCAA tournament start – both rank second in Virginia history. Waddell owns a 1.26 ERA over his last five NCAA Tournament starts per Andrew Ramspacher of The Daily Progress.
“Brandon Waddell was terrific tonight,” O’Connor said. “I’m sure he didn’t want to come out of the game in the eighth inning because he was pitching his heart out. He had a fantastic outing. A lot of credit goes to San Diego State. Their starting pitcher [Mark Seyler] was really good and did a fantastic job. We were fortunate to hang in there, and that’s because Brandon was pitching well and we played good defense and found a way to scratch across a couple of runs in the eighth.”
In both games, the starter was able to get to the eighth inning and then pass the ball directly to closer Josh Sborz, who is back in the bullpen after starting some weekend series games late in the regular season. Sborz recorded two strikeouts Saturday as he shut down the Aztecs’ comeback hopes in the ninth inning. He needed fewer than 25 pitches both nights to get the Hoos safely into the winner’s circle.
That means Sborz is still available if needed as the Cavaliers try to reach a Super Regional for the sixth time in the last seven years. The Wahoos haven’t named a starter for Sunday’s game, but they are in the driver’s seat in the region. Either SDSU or USC will have used three starters already when they face UVa again and they’ll need to defeat the Hoos twice to advance.
