UM heads to Virginia in need of victories

CORAL GABLES — The Hurricanes know they are running out of time. That’s part of why Wednesday was so frustrating.

Miami’s baseball team — which hasn’t missed the NCAA Tournament in 44 years — is in dire need of wins to keep that streak alive. The Hurricanes had a chance to pick up a victory over a solid Central Florida team on Wednesday, but instead, stranded 12 runners in an eventual 5-2 loss to the Knights.

Now, Miami heads to Virginia for a three-game series against the Cavaliers with the understanding that even a sweep of the 2015 national champions might not be enough to get them in the tournament.

They’ll need multiple wins and at the minimum, a record above .500 and a solid showing in the ACC Tournament to earn that berth. Still, players and coaches insisted Wednesday night they are neither discouraged nor out of the race — not yet, anyway.

“We’ve just got to play every game like it’s our last game. Play the game hard, play like it’s our last game, understand we still have a shot to the end,” Hurricanes coach Jim Morris said after Miami’s loss to UCF, which is coached by former Hurricane and two-time national champion Greg Lovelady. “Whether it’s going into the ACC Tournament and doing whatever, we just have to play one game at a time and play like it’s our last game.”

The odds, for now though, are long.

Ahead of Miami’s weekend series against Virginia, the Hurricanes don’t appear in the projected field of 64 put together by either Baseball America or D1Baseball.com. Miami’s RPI – an index that ranks teams based on win percentage and strength of schedule — stands at 74.

By contrast, the Cavaliers are No. 9 in the most recent RPI, which means three wins at Virginia could go a long way in helping the Hurricanes’ cause. After their series against the Cavaliers, Miami will head home to close out the regular season with a Tuesday game against Florida Gulf Coast, which has an RPI of 69, and a three-game series against Virginia Tech, which has an RPI of 117.

If the Hurricanes (24-24) aren’t able to do enough in their final seven regularseason games, their only other path to the NCAA Tournament would be to win the ACC Tournament later this month and secure the conference’s automatic bid — something the program has only done once, in 2008.

Neither path to the tournament will be easy, considering the hole the Hurricanes dug themselves into earlier this season. But staying relaxed and trying not to push too hard, they say, will be key moving on.

“I think everyone is coming out trying to play their game and just play like it’s a new day, every day,” said outfielder Carl Chester.

Irish series

They don’t play every year, but the Miami-Notre Dame football rivalry is set to continue for two more decades.

On Thursday, the ACC announced the five annual matchups its conference schools will play against the Irish, starting with the 2026 slate and going through the 2037 season.

In the release, the ACC announced that Miami will visit Notre Dame in 2028 and 2031, while the Hurricanes will host the Irish in 2032 and 2034. And 20 years from now, the two teams will meet again in South Bend in 2037.

Miami, which traveled to Notre Dame last year, will also host the Irish on Nov. 11 at Hard Rock Stadium.

“We’ve just got to play every game like it’s our last game.” Jim Morris, ’Canes coach

DAVID SANTIAGO/AP Miami Hurricanes left fielder James Davison and his teammates are 24-24 on the season.