Virginia Tech Baseball: Hokies Finish 2021 Without CWS Appearance

CHAPEL HILL, NC – FEBRUARY 19: An Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and NCAA game baseball during a game between High Point and North Carolina at Boshamer Stadium on February 19, 2020 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Andy Mead/ISI Photos/Getty Images) /

For the first time in a long time, there was hope for the Virginia Tech Hokies Baseball team this season. In their first full season back from COVID-19, the Hokies had their best overall season since the 2013 College Baseball season. This was the last time the Hokies made it to the NCAA D1 World Series Tournament with a 40-22-2 overall record (15-14-1 in ACC play). This season, the Hokies finished above .500% overall with a 27-25 overall record (16-20 in ACC play) but failed to reach the NCAA Tournament.

The Hokies had a tremendous season until they lost seven straight ACC Conference games right before the ACC Championship. Three of those losses were to the eighth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting. In the ACC Championship first round on May 25th, the Hokies lost to their rivals in the Virginia Cavaliers with a 3-2 score.

The following day, the Hokies were dominated 8-0 to the seventh-ranked Fighting Irish. From then, it was going hard to be convincing of an NCAA Tournament appearance especially with eight other ACC teams possessing a better track record.

During the regular season, there were some great moments as the Hokies took two of the three games over the sixth-ranked Miami Hurricanes from February 26th to 28th. They were also 3-0 in a series over the #15 Pittsburgh Panthers from March 26th to March 28th. The negative factors of the season include the 0-3 series against Notre Dame, losing two of the three games in a series against an unranked Virginia, and losing two of the three games in a series against an unranked Clemson Tigers.

While it was not the boost that the Hokies were looking for in their acceleration as a national competitor, there is potential for the future. This was the best season under fourth-year head coach John Szefc. The Hokies had some excellent moments in the batting game despite moments where they stalled during the season. Virginia Tech finished sixth in the ACC in batting average (.271%), sixth in runs (309), fourth in hits (480), fourth in doubles (97), seventh in RBIs (282), and seventh in on-base percentage (0.365%). The Hokies had four batters where they scored at least 35 runs during the season.

One of the brightest spots of the season is the emergence of true freshman outfielder Gavin Cross. He finished the season with 51 game starts for 203 at-bats, 48 runs, 70 hits, 13 doubles, five triples, 11 home runs, 35 RBIs, 126 total bases, an on-base percentage of .415%, and a batting average of .345%. Cross led the team in runs, hits, doubles, home runs, total bases, slugging percentage (.621%), and on-base percentage. Cross was also highly efficient in the fielding game for the Hokies as he only accounted for two errors and a fielding percentage of .978%. He is the first freshman Hokie ever to be named a part of the first-team All-ACC as he led the conference in hits and triples.

There is some serious work to be done this off-season for the Hokies if they want to compete for the ACC Championship title. Their pitching game, for example, needs some more efficient performances overall. This season, the Hokies ranked middle-to-near last in the ACC in most of the major pitching categories. They were ranked sixth in the ACC in ERA (4.82). Their fielding has been efficient through most of the games this season.

This is a Hokies team that finally looks to be on the positive trend towards an NCAA Tournament appearance despite missing this season. With some big players returning, including Cross, the Hokies will attempt to make a bigger noise for the ACC title and a tournament appearance in 2022.