No. 17 Baseball Finishes DH Sweep of Lehigh with 4-1 Win

Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com Pat McAnaney tossed six scoreless innings in his start Saturday.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia baseball team finished off a doubleheader sweep on Opening Day Saturday with a 4-1 win over Lehigh at Davenport Field. UVa broke a one-all tie in the seventh inning with two runs to go on to the win.

Virginia (2-0) received a sterling pitching performance from Pat McAnaney (Sr., Syracuse, N.Y.), who went six shutout innings while surrendering just two hits and a walk. He also tied a career high with nine strikeouts. Kevin Arico (Fr., Flemington, N.J.) picked up the win for Virginia is his first college appearance after working 1.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen. Michael Schwimer (Sr., Alexandria, Va.) pitched a perfect ninth inning to earn the save.

Andrew Grimm took the loss for Lehigh (0-2) after giving up two runs, two hits and a walk in an inning of work. Mountain Hawks starter Greg Angelo matched McAnaney most of the way and gave up just one run, two hits and four walks in six innings while striking out five.

The pitching was dominant for much of the game and neither team scored until Virginia broke the ice in the fifth inning. With two outs, Franco Valdes (So., Miami, Fla.) walked and then moved up on a John Barr (Fr., Ivyland, Pa.) single and Jarrett Parker (Fr., Stafford, Va.) walk. Valdes came home when Greg Miclat (Jr., Concord, N.C.) coaxed a walk.

Lehigh tied the game in the seventh inning against Cavalier reliever Jake Rule (Sr., Waynesboro, Va.). With one out, Logan Marshall singled and Patrick Groome followed with a bad-hop infield single. After a walk loaded the bases, Billy Goldman singled to score Marshall, but Barr gunned down Groome at the plate to keep the score tied at one.

The Cavaliers responded with two runs in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Tyler Cannon (So., Pigeon Forge, Tenn.) ripped a single to left-center to score Barr, who had walked to lead off the inning. David Adams (Jr., Margate, Fla.) then grounded out to second to plate Parker, who had a bunt single earlier in the inning.

Virginia added a run in the eighth inning, as Jeremy Farrell (Jr., Westlake, Ohio) legged out a triple on the first pitch of the inning and then scored on a balk.

The teams are back at 11 a.m. Sunday for another doubleheader. The first game will be seven innings, while the second game will consist of nine innings. Parking will be limited to the Emmet/Ivy Garage because of the men’s basketball game vs. NC State that afternoon. No baseball parking will be available in the University Hall lots.