CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Jake Stinnett pitched six solid innings, Brandon Lowe had two RBIs and Maryland beat Virginia 5-4 Saturday in the opener of an NCAA super regional.
The Terrapins (40-21) moved one win from advancing to their first College World Series in program history.
“I’m very happy for our guys and everybody in our program to be able to come here and play the way we did, perform the way we did against a very, very good team in a very tough environment,” Maryland coach John Szefc said.
Game 2 of the best of three series is Sunday.
In a matchup of All-ACC pitchers, Stinnett (8-6) outworked Virginia’s Nathan Kirby by scattering three runs and six hits.
In the bottom of the first inning, with the bases loaded and the score tied at 1, the Terrapins’ Charlie White made a diving catch in center field to start an 8-6-2 double play and end the Virginia threat.
“That was absolutely huge,” Stinnett said. “That could have turned into a nightmare of an inning.”
White went 3 for 5 and scored two runs.
The Cavaliers (47-14) left 14 men on base, going 2 for 14 with runners in scoring position.
“We got a lot of traffic on the bases today, which was good against such a good pitcher like Stinnett,” Virginia junior first baseman Mike Papi said. “But we just couldn’t come up with that big two-out hit a few times. Leaving 14 guys on is really going to hurt us if we want to beat a good team like Maryland is.”
Kirby (9-2), the ACC co-Pitcher of the Year, had his shortest outing of the season, giving up all five runs and seven hits in 4 2/3 innings. His ERA increased from 1.36 to 2.04 as the left-hander was dealt his first loss since March 22 at Miami.
“I think it was just their day to hit,” Kirby said of the Terrapins. “I had some good at-bats where I got some good pitches in there, but then they were hitting the pitches that I wasn’t making.”
Papi had three hits and drove in a run.
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