With just two series left in the college baseball regular season, every game matters—especially for a team on the bubble of the NCAA tournament field.
The Virginia Cavaliers, fighting to secure a spot in the 64-team bracket, are in a desperate need of conference wins. Meanwhile the Miami Hurricanes, boasting a 21-7 record at home, are pushing to host their first NCAA regional since 2023 and need a few more victories to cement their case.
On a cool Friday night, the Cavaliers held the lead in the opening frame and never faltered, defeating the red-hot Hurricanes, 6-1.
Virginia’s bats came out hot to begin the game facing Miami’s Griffin Hugus. In the first, Virginia sent up eight batters in the inning, plating three against Hugus.
UVA’s Luka Hanson added to the 3-1 lead in the fourth. Against Hugus, Hanson hit his third home run of the season over the wall in left field.
Against the righty starter, Henry Ford, Henry Godbout, and Harrison Didawick all hit RBI singles, giving run support for Friday night starter Jay Woolfolk.
Woolfolk cooled down the Hurricane bats, an issue for opposing teams over the last month. In six innings of work, the Chesterfield, Virginia native struck out seven batters, surrendering three hits and one run.
After averaging 6.7 runs since the beginning of April, the Hurricane bats fell silent to the Cavalier pitching staff. UM’s offense tallied just one run on four hits while striking out nine times.
Miami’s lone run came in the third inning. After Michael Torres reached on an error and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, Max Galvin put UM on the board. Facing Woolfolk, the Oklahoma State transfer hit an RBI double down the left field line, scoring Torres with ease.
Hugus had a solid outing for the ’Canes despite the poor first inning. In five frames, the Cincinnati transfer allowed four runs on six hits, striking out six and walking three.
Didawick added to the Virginia lead in the eighth. Facing freshman Michael Fernandez, Didawick hit a two-run home run deep into the Charlottesville night to extend the UVA score to 6-1.
The Hurricanes (30-19, 14-10 ACC) entered Friday’s game with a 10-game ACC winning streak, dating back to April 12 and sitting at fourth in the conference. After taking the two games against No. 16 NC State, UM has placed itself on the cusp of hosting an NCAA regional.
The Cavaliers (28-17, 12-10 ACC) began the season as the second-ranked team in the country, looking to go back to Omaha for the third consecutive year. But, after a rough 12-11 start to the season, Virginia has been on the outside looking in to make the field of 64.
With Friday’s win, the Cavaliers have won eighth of their last nine games, including two of their last three ACC series. With a series win over the Hurricanes, UVA will have a legitimate resume to get into the NCAA tournament.
The Hurricanes look to force a rubber match with the Cavaliers with the second of three games on Saturday. Freshman AJ Ciscar will take the bump for UM, facing junior lefty Bradley Hodges. First pitch at Davenport Field is set for 4 p.m.