OMAHA, Neb. (WTKR) — After a year that included offensive numbers that led the country, the University of Virginia baseball team bats were limited in the most crucial game of its season.
The Cavaliers were limited to just five hits by TCU, falling 4-3 to bring its season to a close in the Men's College World Series.
UVA (50-15) fell behind immediately in the first inning before Jake Gelof tied things up in the same frame with a fielder's choice ground out.
The Horned Frogs scored the next two runs of the game however, putting Virginia in a hole it couldn't fully recover from.
“Two one-run losses certainly hurts, and I feel for our guys because they’ve had a terrific year,” Cavaliers coach Brian O'Connor said. “That said, we didn’t win, and our goal is to win here in Omaha and have a chance to win a national championship. We certainly fell short of that.”
Virginia Beach native Ethan Anderson hit a solo home run in the seventh inning, making it a 3-2 game. After TCU scored again in the next inning, Chesapeake's Harrison Didawick singled and then scored to make it 4-3. The Cavaliers left the tying run on base in the ninth.
Connelly Early pitched five innings as the starter, striking out three while giving up six hits and two runs.
"Going undefeated in non-conference, it's just another something special about this team," Anderson said. "Everything that being on this team has accomplished throughout the year. It's one of these teams that I'm going to look back, just remember every single guy on this team."
This is the first time UVA has failed to win a game during an appearance in the Men's College World Series. Their 50 wins this season were the most the Cavaliers have tallied since 2014.
