In a season filled with struggles and disappointment, the baseball teams is looking to put all of that behind itself as it travels to Charlottesville this weekend to take on the Virginia Cavaliers.
“We have had a rough start, a rough middle, and the ending is what itís going to be all about,” junior Dallas Poulk said. “We just want to end positive and end on a roll and see what we can make of it.”
The Pack is entering the weekend series with a record of 19-22, while the Cavaliers go into it with a record of 33-8-1. The series is a three game series beginning Friday night at seven. On the mound for the Pack will be junior Jimmy Gillheeny, who looks to continue his strong play in Charlottesville.
“I can’t wait to get back onto the mound. I had some success there my freshman year,” Gillheeney said. “I got the win behind Andrew Brackman, my freshman year. Hopefully I can get over there and do it again.”
With the struggles the team has gone through this year, coach Elliott Avent is hoping that the team can just go out and play with pride not only for themselves but for their University.
“We are not really playing good baseball and we just need to turn things up a notch. It’s about pride. It’s about pride in yourself, the game, and your university,” Avent said. “Once you put that jersey on you should feel like it’s an honor and a privilege, and you need to earn it and play for it. It’s not an entitlement to wear this uniform, it’s a privilege.”
After an inter-squad scrimmage Wednesday at practice, the team is hoping it can just get back to having fun playing the game all the players love.
“We had a really good practice today. We had a lot of guys play really hard and just played with a lot of fun and excitement and we have to just carry it over into the weekend,” Poulk said. “Just seeing the fight in people’s eye again and people getting after it and just battling again is fun to do. It’s a much different game when people are out their enjoying it and having fun.”
Even with the struggles the team has gone through this season, it is always focused on one main aspect, which is staying united as a team, and giving its best effort each and every game no matter what the situation or score is.
“We have to keep reminding ourselves that we are a team and everyone has each others back,” Gillheeney said. “Every day we go out there every guy has to have trust in all the guys on the field and know that we are in this together and there is not anyone individually that is hurting from our play its everyone. We have to keep each other up and play as a team. “
Over the past years the Pack has had a lot of success against Virginia, winning seven of the last ten match ups against the Cavaliers. However, playing at Virginia is always a challenge with its unique ballpark.
“We have had a lot of success against Virginia in the past. It should be a great challenge. We just need to play well right now,” Avent said. “Their ball park is very unique, it’s a big ballpark, and very spacious. They have a ton of speed, they run a lot and their pitchers try to put the ball in play and pitch to contact.”
