Baseball: Virginia hosts NC State in huge 3-game series beginning tonight

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Brian O’Connor won’t have to spend much time explaining what this weekend could mean for his Virginia baseball team. The Cavaliers, ranked No. 10 in the nation, host NC State in a three-game series beginning tonight (7 p.m. at Disharoon Park, ACC Network).

“They know what’s at stake,” O’Connor said after Wednesday’s 18-5 rout of visiting George Washington, a game in which UVA broke its single-season home-run record for the third-consecutive year (88). “First and foremost is our finish in the conference.

“They know where we’re at at this point of the season, and if they want to have an opportunity to do some special things in the postseason, then finishing the job in the regular season is critically important, and that’s the opportunity they have in front of them.”

The Cavaliers (36-12 overall and 14-10 in the ACC) are literally on the heels of North Carolina for first place in the Coastal Division. Virginia closes out the regular season with this weekend’s series against NC State (27-18, 13-10) from the Atlantic Division, then hosts Virginia Tech the following weekend.

Virginia could overtake UNC for first place in the division and owns a tie-breaker over the Tar Heels after winning a series against Carolina. What is also important, is finishing strong in the Cavaliers’ pursuit to host opening rounds in the NCAA Tournament.

UVA’s beatdown of GW in its nonconference finale was impressive because the Cavaliers were coming off an exam break and didn’t miss a beat, particularly offensively, where Virginia boasts one of the most potent lineups in the nation.

O’Connor’s squad features three of the top hitters in the ACC in Bobby Whalen, Henry Godbout and Jacob Ference. The Wahoos lead the conference in batting (.344), on-base percentage, runs scored, hits, RBI, total bases and doubles.

“It was good to be back out there and get the competitive juices going again before certainly a huge series this weekend with NC State,” O’Connor said. “We have a great opportunity out in front of us.

“We’ve had a great fan following all year long and we have an opportunity over these last two weekends to break our all-time, single-season attendance record, and it’s within striking distance. And I just encourage our community and our fans to come out this weekend and support our guys. Next weekend [support] is easy because it’s Virginia Tech and it’s the last weekend of the season, but this is the weekend that we need everybody’s support.”

Tonight is Military Appreciation Night, Saturday’s game is designated First Responders Appreciation Day (4 p.m.) and Sunday (1 p.m.) is Mother’s Day.

The Cavaliers hammered out six home runs against GW, led by Harrison , who has 18 on the season, tied for the fourth-most in UVA single-season history. But Didawick isn’t the only slugger in the lineup.

“It’s pretty amazing when you lose O’Donnell, Teel and Geloff out of the middle of your lineup and the home runs those guys hit, and the fact that we just broke our single-season home-run record,” O’Connor said. “It’s a sign that the guys [returning] from last year got better. They went away in the summer, worked hard, got stronger and improved their game.

“Those home runs are coming from everybody in the lineup. Everybody has a chance to hit the ball out of the park. We’re not trying to do it intentionally, they’re squaring it up enough and getting into some good counts, and they’re physical guys.”

Check out the replay of “The Jerry & Jerry Show” from earlier this week, when O’Connor was the guest and talked about how he built the program and shared his philosophies on a number of topics.