Locker Room Access - Virginia

By Josh Burton

For the first time this Spring, adversity found many of the UVA programs. Let's see how they fared before checking in on some bonus content.

Baseball

UVA baseball had a pretty tough week, going 2-3 while dropping back to #14. They dropped a midweek road game at ODU before coming back to the Dish to take down George Mason the next night. The weekend series brought more of the same struggles with the Hoos dropping the series 2-1 against Georgia Tech.

Pitching was once again the issue, with the Hoos allowing the Yellow Jackets to rack up 37 runs on 47 hits over the weekend. Fielding also left much to be desired as there were multiple errors made.

The one silver lining, however, is that reinforcements appear to be on the way. In the field, Henry Godbout made his return in Saturday's contest. On the mound, there are two pitchers who appear to be making their way back. Joe Savino continued his progress picking up the start on Sunday, however he was only able to go two innings before being pulled on a 31 pitch count. First-year Bryson Moore was also seen on the mound in the George Mason game, marking his first appearance since February. 

Luckily, there’s still plenty of time for these guys to get back to form before the tournament begins. The Hoos will be back in action as they host Liberty tonight (6 pm) before heading to Boston College for a Thursday-Saturday series. The first contest of the series will be held at Fenway Park (4/25, 7 pm).

Softball

UVA softball went 2-2 this week but picked up a major series win. After beginning the week with a 6-0 loss to #15 Virginia Tech and dropping the first game of the series at #3 Duke in extra innings, the Hoos rallied back to sweep the Saturday doubleheader and ultimately pick up the series win. 

The Hoos get their sixth ACC series win of the season!

This one at No. 3 Duke.#GoHoos | #OnTheRise | #HoosNext pic.twitter.com/0E66yYBuxg

— Virginia Softball (@UVASoftball) April 20, 2024

This marked both the first series victory over Duke in program history and also the first time the program has won six ACC series in a season. Jade Hylton was the star offensively, hitting a grand slam in the first game of the doubleheader and following it up with a 2-run homer in the second game. On the mound, Madi Harris set the program record with 10 career saves. 

The Hoos are definitely trending towards making the NCAA tournament. They’ll look to finish the regular season strong with a game against #15 Virginia Tech tonight (7 pm), which will be televised on ACC Network before closing out the season with a weekend series at Georgia Tech.

Roundup

#2 Men’s Tennis played in the ACC Tournament this week, picking up wins over Clemson and #12 Duke before dropping a heartbreaking Championship match to #17 Florida State. The NCAA Tournament will begin on May 3rd.

#4 Women’s Tennis also saw similar disappointment in the ACC Tournament as they picked up wins over Notre Dame and #23 Florida State before bowing out in the championship match to #5 UNC. Also like the men, their NCAA Tournament will start on May 3rd. 

#4 Men’s Lacrosse dropped a tough contest at #7 Syracuse on Saturday. They’ll look to rebound and close out the regular season with some momentum as they travel to #1 Notre Dame on Saturday (4/27, 2 pm). This one will air on ESPNU.

#6 Women’s Lacrosse finished out the regular season with a victory at Virginia Tech last Wednesday (4/17). They will begin ACC Tournament play this week as they take on UNC tomorrow (4/24, 2 pm). The game will be on ACC Network.

Bonus Football Content

This weekend also saw UVA Football have their annual Spring Game. The highly contested QB battle saw both Tony Muskett and Anthony Colandrea each shine, with Tony going 10-18 for 200 yards with 2 TDs in the victory for his squad while Anthony went an impressive 15-16 for 102 yards. This battle figures to play into summer workouts and may not be decided until just before the opening weekend. This year, the first game will be against Richmond at Scott Stadium on August 31st. 

"Appreciate the fans for coming out! ... It was a great experience, man! I think everyone had fun! That's the ultimate thing about it!" - Chico Bennett#GoHoos pic.twitter.com/cLAlnjHPaD

— Virginia Cavaliers (@VirginiaSports) April 20, 2024

(Featured Image Credit: Grace Landini/UVA Athletics)

Portal madness continues.  UVA expects five total visitors over the next week that we know of, a mixture of transfers and high school recruits.  And some new names are emerging as well.  

Roster

Sophomore forward Ryan Dunn made it official on Tuesday.  He’s turning pro.  There never seemed to be any real chance of him staying.  So he did UVA a big favor by jumping in the draft with both feet, instead of going the testing route.  It opens up a needed 3rd scholarship.  And more importantly, recruits now know for sure that his spot in the starting lineup is up for grabs. 

The plan is to try to use all three of those open scholarships this spring on a point guard and likely a pair of forwards.  

There’s still speculation that junior guard Dante Harris could choose to transfer out.  If/when UVA adds another point guard, it could make his leaving more likely.  Harris is recovering from a recent ankle surgery to repair the injury that nagged him for most of the season.  

Last Week’s Visitor

Virginia hosted their first official visitor of the spring last weekend, St. Mary’s transfer forward Joshua Jefferson.  He left without committing, but UVA will still have a pretty good chance with him.  He told On3 Sports, “The visit was amazing. I loved the players and the coaches.  The support from the community was great.”  Cavs Corner published a more thorough interview with him on Tuesday, linked here.  

Jefferson seems to be speeding up his process now after reshuffling his visit schedule.  He’s at TCU right now then will head to Iowa State this weekend.  Michigan is trying to get a visit too.  A verdict over the next week seems very possible.  UVA is pushing for it, as will no doubt the others he visits.   

And the other expected visitor never arrived.  Harvard transfer point guard Malik Mack canceled his official visit at the last minute.  He committed to Georgetown, his first stop of the weekend.  The UVA side always thought they were the underdog in his recruitment, so the decision wasn’t a total surprise.  But there was a lot of disappointment, mainly over wasting a prime visit slot on the first big weekend of transfer recruiting. 

Upcoming Visits

Trent Perry is expected for an official visit this weekend.  The class of 2024 Harvard Westlake (CA) point guard has been busy lately with the McDonald’s All-American game and the Nike Hoop Summit.  He recently reopened his recruitment from a prior commitment to Southern Cal following their coaching change.  The On3 industry average ranks him as the #37 player in the class.  

At this time, we don’t know where else Perry may be planning to visit. There might not be any other visits set yet.  Gonzaga, Baylor, Alabama, UCLA, and Oregon have all been mentioned as possibilities.   He has said he’ll take a few visits over the next couple weeks with the hope of deciding by early may.  It’s a high profile recruitment.  Other schools are bound to push NIL to the forefront.  But UVA has a legit shot to pull it off. They’ve been going really hard after him.  Sources close to Perry have said UVA has a slight edge heading into the visit.  

To keep this chronological, there is another visitor expected on Sunday.  I don’t know his identity yet, but presumably it’s a transfer recruit.  Check the forum in the coming days.  We’ll piece it together.  UPDATE: I no longer think this is true.  A reshuffling of the visit schedule led to a miscommunication. 

And Illinois-Chicago grad transfer forward Toby Okani has set an official visit for Tuesday.  The New Jersey native played his first two years at Duquesne, then the last two at UIC.  He averaged 11.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals, and 2.0 blocks this past season.  His play on defense and positional versatility are the traits UVA likes.  

It’s not clear if UVA is prepared to accept his commitment right now.  But he’s moving forward, so they have to take visitors while they’re available.  He and Joshua Jefferson are being recruited for one spot.  If Jefferson gets away, Okani could become a serious target.  Okani released a top 5 on Tuesday with UVA, West Virginia, LSU, St. Bonaventure, and Pepperdine.  He’s already visited St. Bonaventure and WVU, and will visit LSU this weekend. 

2025 Action

There are also a pair of 2025 guards expected for official visits over the next week.  Gonzaga (DC) combo guard Derek Dixon is scheduled to arrive on Saturday.  And then Sidwell (DC) point guard Acaden Lewis begins his visit on Tuesday.  

Dixon visited Pittsburgh last weekend.  Pitt along with Syracuse have been the main two in his recruitment, with UVA in the picture.  Lewis canceled his visit to Georgetown this week.  Their commitment from Malik Mack may have impacted that, I’m not sure.  Florida State and Villanova are among the other contenders for Lewis.  

Of the two, Acaden Lewis seems to be the one UVA has a better chance with.  It’s all dependent on how rosters shake out when the portal madness is over.  If UVA gets Trent Perry or another young point guard in the portal, it might take them out of the running for both Dixon and Lewis.  

2025 recruiting in general is all in limbo for now.  Not just for UVA, but everybody this time of year.  Yet, coaches still need to continue recruiting these players in order to be in position when the dust settles. 

To recap, that’s 5 total expected official visitors over the next week.  Trent Perry arrives first, followed by Derek Dixon, then our mystery man, and finally Toby Okani and Acaden Lewis on Tuesday.  The exact arrival dates are fuzzy on a couple of those but that’s the order.  

UPDATE: UVA has reshuffled their visit schedule.  Derek Dixon is now the first visitor, arriving on Thursday.  Then Trent Perry over the weekend.  Followed by Acaden Lewis and Toby Okani early next week.  

Other Transfer Recruits 

A new name to take seriously is Evansville grad transfer forward Ben Humrichous.  UVA has been talking to him quite a bit, with Tony Bennett taking the lead personally.   The Indiana native averaged 14.7 points and shot 41% from deep this year.  He has an interesting story, having played his first three seasons at NAIA Huntington.  

Humrichous is also going through the NBA Draft process, so that’s delayed his recruitment so far.  With a 3rd scholarship open now, UVA can fully pursue the second forward they have in mind, which will ideally be a shooter like Humirchous.  He hasn’t talked about which schools are involved.  We know from reports that Indiana is all over him, and that he’s had conversations with Illinois and Maryland. 

Syracuse transfer forward Maliq Brown is visiting Duke this week and has another upcoming visit planned to Miami.  I’ve heard UVA is still hoping to get a turn after that.  It seems like a longshot to go our way at this point. 

There’s some drama surrounding Northern Illinois transfer forward Xavier Amos.  He was originally scheduled to visit this weekend.  That was canceled.  He planned to commit to Illinois, but that may have fallen through.  I’m still hearing UVA isn’t likely to be involved.  It’s a fluid situation though. 

Each day brings a new report of interest in a transfer recruit, along with fresh portal entries.  UVA is looking into Texas transfer point guard Tyrese Hunter.  He’s a Wisconsin kid with Bennett connections.  It’s a high profile recruitment though.  And there’s a lot of talk that Duke forward TJ Power could decide to transfer.  UVA would be all over him.  

Crazy time of year. Things can and will change quickly.  Be sure to check the forum for updates.  Thanks for subscribing to Locker Room Access.

By Josh Burton

The spring sports season is rapidly approaching its end as the UVA programs are all gearing up for what should be a very exciting postseason across Grounds. Let's take a look at where things currently stand.

Baseball

UVA Baseball picked up yet another 2-1 series win at Louisville over the weekend, and made it back to #10 in the D1 poll in doing so. This weekend featured more of the same for the Hoos, tying a program record 47 runs across a 3-game ACC series, with multiple players having multi-homer games and Ethan Anderson potentially breaking his cold spell by going an incredible 5-5 in the series opener. 

FINAL | Louisville felt the full force of the UVA lineup tonight, 21-3.

Most runs scored by Virginia in an ACC game since 2010 (27 at Maryland) and 3rd time this season Cavaliers scored 20+ runs.

Henry Ford and Jacob Ference each with 2 homers, Ethan Anderson 5-5 at the plate.

— Preston Willett (@PrestonWillett) April 13, 2024

Unfortunately, the hot hitting wasn’t the only trend to continue. Pitching issues and fielding miscues cost the Cavaliers the sweep with a loss on Saturday. Arms have been a major issue all season, particularly for starting pitching. 

At this point Evan Blanco has cemented himself as the only sure thing starter each weekend, with both other days being wide open. Watch for Owen Coady to potentially claim a spot, as he’s been pretty good for Hoos when he’s pitched so far. Outside of that, it’s a very open race. The final weekend game could become a staff day where they go with matchups and feel. Either way, it’ll be very interesting to see how it plays out and if this historically good hitting squad can mash their way to Omaha. 

The Hoos have a big week with 5 games scheduled. They’ll be at ODU tonight (6 pm) before beginning a 5-game homestand tomorrow against George Mason (4/17, 6 pm). They will then play host to Georgia Tech for a weekend series beginning Friday (4/19, 6 pm).

Softball

UVA Softball saw a mixed week as they went 2-2, picking up a huge 2-1 series win over NC State while also dropping a midweek contest to Liberty. Although they have one more home contest on the schedule, Sunday served as a very memorable Senior Day for the Hoos. Weather conditions around Palmer Park were perfect and the Wahoos picked up a huge walk off victory off a sac fly from Abby Weaver. The victory marked a program record 5th three-game ACC series victory for a team that has postseason aspirations. Once polls are released, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see the Hoos ranked as they have been playing very well. 

The Hoos will host Virginia Tech tonight (6 pm) before traveling to Duke for a weekend series beginning Friday (4/19, 6 pm).

Men’s Tennis 

#3 Men’s Tennis finished up their regular season with victories at Clemson (4/11) and Georgia Tech (4/13). They’ll now set their sights on the postseason, with the ACC tournament being this weekend. Quarterfinals will begin on Friday (4/19), with the Hoos beginning play at 10 am.

I wanted to do a highlight for Men’s Tennis for a very special accomplishment by the 4th years. With the weekend sweep they finished out an unblemished 48-0 conference record over their 4 seasons as Wahoos, earning a 4th straight regular season title. Hats off to Inaki Montes, Chris Rodesch, Alex Kiefer and Jeffrey von der Schulenburg on the amazing accomplishment. 

𝟒𝟖-𝟎!!!
Iñaki Montes, Chris Rodesch, Alex Kiefer and Jeffrey von der Schulenburg did not lose a conference match in their ACC careers!
Four straight ACC Regular-Season titles. Four straight 12-0 seasons!! #GoHoos ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/HrrvApRCcG

— Virginia Men's Tennis (@UVAMensTennis) April 13, 2024

Roundup

#5 Women’s Tennis also finished out their regular season with victories over #19 Miami (4/12) and #23 Florida State (4/14). With the pair of victories, the Hoos picked up a share of the ACC regular-season title for just the second time in program history. They’ll now set their sights on the ACC tournament, with their first contest scheduled for the quarterfinals (4/19, 6 pm). 

#2 Men’s Lacrosse suffered just their second defeat of the season at Duke on Sunday. They’ll next play the penultimate game of the regular season on Saturday at Syracuse (4/20, 2 pm). This one will air nationally on ESPNU. Also of note, USA Lacrosse Magazine published an article on Wahoo star Connor Shellenberger last week, you can check it out here

#6 Women’s Lacrosse picked up a huge OT victory over then #3 Boston College on Senior Day over the weekend. Madison Alaimo scored the winning goal in OT. Their regular season finale will be tomorrow night at Virginia Tech (4/17, 7 pm). This game will air on ACC Network

(Featured Image Credit: Grace Landini/UVA Athletics)