UVA evens series after loss at Fenway
No. 14 Virginia edged Boston College 4-3 Friday at Harrington Village in Brighton, Massachusetts, leveling their series at a victory apiece.
Eric Becker drove in two runs for the Cavaliers (32-12, 13-10 Atlantic Coast Conference), who lost Thursday night to the Eagles at Fenway Park. UVA left fielder Adam Teel made a brilliant diving catch when BC (21-20, 8-15) had the bases loaded in the eighth, keeping the score tied at 3.
Bobby Whalen singled home the tying run in the sixth. He also scored the go-ahead run in the ninth, sliding for a run despite the second baseman’s throw home on Griff O’Ferrall’s slow ground ball. The Eagles retired another runner at the plate on the play to end the inning, but Chase Hungate (6-0) retired BC’s first three batters of the ninth to end the game. That capped five innings of shutout relief that also included Ryan Osinski’s two innings and Jay Woolfolk’s 1 ⅓.
Sacred Heart 9, Norfolk State 5:
The Spartans (11-30, 6-16 Northeast Conference) led 4-0 entering the bottom of the fifth in the opener of a three-game series in Fairfield, Connecticut, but the Pioneers (21-19, 16-6) pulled even in that inning and went ahead 9-4 with a four-run sixth.
Collin Curry was 2 for 4 and scored twice for NSU. Kydese Queen was 2 for 4 with a run and an RBI, and Brendan Burke hit a two-run double in the second. Starter Dalton Barham took the loss, pitching six innings.
Gavin Donohue catalyzed Sacred Heart by going 3 for 3 with two runs and an RBI.
NSU, which is 11th in the 12-team NEC, must go on a major surge to qualify for the six-team conference tournament.
Late Thursday Apprentice 7, Virginia Peninsula Community College 6:
Jett Winslow hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth, giving Apprentice School (35-7) a triumph at War Memorial Stadium in Hampton.
The Builders set a single-season victory record in the regular-season finale, and they’ll be seeded No. 1 in the New South Athletic Conference Tournament in Wilson, North Carolina. They will play the fourth seed at 11 a.m. Thursday, May 2.
VPCC (11-33) led 4-0 before Apprentice answered in the third inning on a run-scoring wild pitch and Nate Yeary’s two-run homer to right. Riggs Ellis’ RBI double tied the score in the fourth.
Boston College 8, No. 14 Virginia 2:
The Cavaliers lost at Fenway Park in a series opener that was the 12th annual ALS Awareness Game. Catcher Parker Landwehr led the Eagles by going 4 for 4 with two runs and three RBIs; he opened the scoring with a fourth-inning home run.
UVA left-hander Evan Blanco (4-3) gave up four earned runs and five hits as he took the loss for the Cavaliers, though it was a memorable game for him. He grew up in the Boston area as a Red Sox fan.
The game has been played annually in honor of former Boston College baseball captain Pete Frates since his ALS diagnosis in 2012.