Cavaliers can't break through in loss to Tigers

It seemed like almost every ball the Cavaliers put in play was a caught line drive. There was Alex Tappen’s liner to the shortstop that could have been an RBI if not for a leaping snag. Then there was Tanner Morris’ shot right back to the pitcher that was caught in the fifth. Cayman Richardson lined a ball to center to start the sixth inning, but a diving play was made to negate a would-be hit.

They are just a few examples of UVa’s frustrating futility in a 3-2 loss to Clemson.

“We had a ton of high-quality at-bats and lineouts and barrels and stuff like that,” said Andy Weber, who lined out in the eighth inning. “We just had nothing to show for it.”

Virginia played a clean, well-pitched game. But this loss will sting as a winnable game turned into a tough loss. It continued to push the Cavaliers to the brink of their season.

Last week, head coach Brian O’Connor said this weekend would be a measuring stick to decide if UVa’s season had turned for the better. The team is playing better, but getting wins — plural — against a Top-10 team this weekend remains paramount.

“Certainly, you’ve got to look at things holistically,” O’Connor said. “When you go through a season, you’ve got to look at what’s in front of you. Decide, OK, how are you going to make some decisions on how you do some things?”

An example of “some things” is likely O’Connor’s way of managing the game as a must-win, like putting in the team’s best reliever despite facing a deficit, which UVa did on Friday.

The Tigers took the lead in the third inning with two outs. Logan Davidson smashed a would-be home run to left field that UVa’s Charlie Cody leapt to rob before it went over the fence. The next batter, Seth Beer, lined a two-out homer that hit the top of the right-field wall and bounced over.

Virginia took the lead in the bottom of the inning when Cameron Comer and Morris had singles. Comer later scored on a wild pitch and Morris scored on a Weber single.

Then in top of the inning, Casey allowed two straight hits to tie the game. Clemson would eventually take the lead on a groundout. It seemed as though the game would be back and forth, but that was the last time the lead would be traded.

“It’s definitely something you can’t let happen,” Casey said of not getting the shutdown inning. He lamented failing to put up zeroes after scores last Friday as well. “Especially against a team like Clemson. They’re a great team.”

The Cavaliers seemed as though they’d figured out Clemson starter Jacob Hennessy after he’d pitched through the order once. He was throwing in the high-80s at best. Low 70s was more where he lived. But he was promptly taken out after five innings and gave way to a very effective Tigers bullpen. He contrasted well with CU’s closer, Ryly Gilliam, who was throwing 96 miles per hour.

Virginia’s best chance to tie or take the sixth, when Weber was hit by a pitch and Tappen walked. But Nate Eikhoff and Charlie Cody came up empty. From there, Virginia had just two baserunners. One, in the seventh, was thrown out trying to steal.

Andrew Abbott gave the Cavaliers every chance to get a win. He threw 2.1 innings and struck out six batters to keep UVa within reach.

“He’s done an awesome job this year,’ Casey said of the freshman, Abbott. “A lot of freshman have that learning curve, it seems like Andrew has just picked up that role.”

With two outs and a runner at first in the ninth, the Cavaliers were facing the exact same situation they came back from five days prior. This time, though, Jack Weiller flied out harmlessly to left field to open the crucial weekend series with a loss.

“[We] just couldn’t come up with a big hit in the back part of the game,” O’Connor said. “I will, say I thought we squared some balls up. I thought some guys hit a lot of line drives. That happens in the game of baseball.”