Right-hander Mike Shawaryn throws a pitch during the Terps’ 10-1 win over Iowa at Bob “Turtle” Smith Field on April 10, 2015.
When the NCAA selection committee released the tournament bracket May 25, Terrapins baseball right-hander Kevin Mooney noticed their regional was paired up with Virginia’s, the team that ended the Terps’ season last year one win shy of their first-ever College World Series.
But given each team’s positioning in the field, Mooney wasn’t optimistic about a rematch. The Terps and Cavaliers, who both fell short of preseason expectations, received three seeds and had to travel to California for their respective regionals.
Despite facing a tough path, though, both squads advanced. The Cavaliers went undefeated in the Lake Elsinore Regional — defeating USC in 11 innings in the title game — while the Terps topped No. 1 overall seed UCLA twice in three nights to secure their second straight regional championship.
The two team’s unlikely runs set up a Super Regionals rematch at Davenport Field in Charlottesville, Virginia, starting Friday. And though the Terps lost the rubber game of the best-of-three series a year ago, they’re determined to avenge that season-ending defeat.
“We were both three seeds, so we figured it was going to be a slim chance that both of us were going to make it,” Mooney said. “Now that it happened, we’re back on the East Coast, and we’re going back to Davenport. We got some big-time unfinished business.”
While the opponent and location are the same, coach John Szefc recognizes both teams have changed since last season. A year ago, Virginia was the No. 3 national seed and finished as the NCAA runner up. The Terps, meanwhile, made their first NCAA tournament since 1971 and captured their first-ever regional crown.
Furthermore, the Terps lost former shortstop Blake Schmidt and center fielder Charlie White, players who helped stabilized Szefc’s team at the top of the order and in the field.
To help fill the voids, the veteran coach has gotten a lift from his first-year players. Shortstop Kevin Smith is batting .274 as the No. 2 hitter, and right-handers Brian Shaffer and Taylor Bloom have put together steady performances this postseason.
“When you bring new guys in, you’re bringing them in to a winning culture where there’s a lot of high expectations,” Szefc said. “You try to bring in the right guys that can adapt to that culture. I think Brian [O’Connor] has certainly done that … and I like to think we’ve done it too and in a short period of time.”
Right-hander Mike Shawaryn, who is 13-2 with a 1.66 ERA, will likely start the series opener Friday night. In Game 2 of the Super Regionals last year, the Carneys Point, New jersey, native allowed five runs on 12 hits over six innings in a 7-3 loss.
Virginia, which forced a third game with the win, dominated the Terps, 11-2, in the series finale a day later to advance to the College World Series.
But as the team’s ace this season, Shawaryn hopes to set the tone for this weekend’s series as the Terps attempt to make program history once again.
“It’s great to come out and go back-to-back regional titles under our belt,” Shawaryn said. “We haven’t been in this position in awhile, going back-to-back years, but we got a lot of guys in here with a lot of belief and a lot of hard work, and we’re not ready to end this thing.”
