Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament – Semifinals
Score: #2 VCU 13, #4 Richmond 7
Location: Tysons, Va. (Capital One Park)
Records: VCU 36-21, Richmond 26-31
 
The short story: Senior third baseman Brandon Eike hit two of VCU's season-high five home runs, while senior lefthander Christian Gordon turned in a masterful performance on the mound to send the Rams to Saturday's Atlantic 10 Conference Championship.
 
LEADING OFF

• Eike, the A-10 Player of the Year, continued his red-hot week in Tysons, Va. The Powhatan, Va. native was 2-for-5 in the game with his two round-trippers and a walk. He scored three times
• Gordon matched his longest career outing, throwing seven innings of six-hit ball. He surrendered just one run and struck out six Spiders to improve to 7-2 this season
• Graduate DH Eli Weisner homered for the third straight game and was 2-for-4 overall at the plate with two RBI and three runs scored
• Senior Ethan Iannuzzi also hit a pinch-hit home run for VCU, while senior centerfielder Cooper Benzin finished 2-for-5 with two RBIs 

THE STRETCH

• VCU did not waste any time Friday. Senior second baseman Casey Kleinman led off with a single, and freshman first baseman Chris McHugh and Eike promptly followed with back-to-back home runs to stake the Rams to a 3-0 lead. Weisner made it 4-0 on an RBI single down the right field line in the second, and a Richmond error with the bases loaded allowed two runs to score. At that point, the rout was on
• Eike and Weisner hit back-to-back solo blasts in the fourth to extend VCU's advantage to 8-0
• VCU racked up 15 hits on the day and hit five homers for the first time this season in the game 

NOTABLE

• VCU has won a record 10 consecutive A-10 Tournament games
• Prior to the A-10 Tournament, VCU had not hit back-to-back homers this season. The Rams have done it three times this week
• Eike and Weisner are the first two Rams to homer in three consecutive games since Will Carlone in 2022
• The Black and Gold have scored double figures in all four of its games against the Spiders this season
• VCU will be making its sixth appearance in the A-10 Championship in 11 opportunities since joining the league in 2013
• Eike has moved into a tie for eighth place on VCU's career home runs list with 24

NEXT UP
VCU will face the winner of Friday evening's elimination contest between Richmond and Saint Joseph's at noon at Capital One Park. The Rams will need just one victory to secure its third A-10 crown in four years, while their opponent will need to win two games.