Score: Richmond 2, VCU 1
Location: Richmond, Va. (The Diamond)
Records: VCU 22-19 (11-8), Richmond 24-18 (11-8)
Pitching dominated the series opener at Richmond on Friday afternoon as VCU dropped the Atlantic 10 contest to the Spiders, 2-1.
LEADING OFF:
- Jacob Lee hit his 11th home run of the season, tying Brandon Inge for sixth all-time in VCU career home runs with 28
- Lee matched his hitting from Tuesday's contest, going 2-2 with two extra-base hits
- Dante DeFranco led off the weekend with a double and Alec Warden had the other hit for the Rams
- VCU arms were stellar out of the bullpen as Cooper Campbell and Dawson Newman combined for four scoreless innings
- Newman closed the game with 1.1 innings of perfect ball, retiring all four Spiders he faced
- Both VCU and Richmond stranded eight runners on base
- The Rams lost by a margin of two-or-fewer runs for the fourth time in the last five games
- With the win, Richmond tied VCU in the A-10 standings
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The Spiders scored a run in each of the first two frames, belting a first-inning home run and a run-scoring double in the second to take a 2-0 lead
- Rams' starter Elias Holbert settled the Spiders' offense and held the score through the fourth before Campbell and Newman placed zeros on the board through the final frame
- Despite getting runners on base and drawing seven free passes, VCU didn't scratch a run across until Lee's towering home run in the eighth inning, cutting the deficit to 2-1
UP NEXT
VCU will look to even the series with Richmond in the three-game Atlantic 10 set at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 25, at Pitt Field. The contest will be streamed on ESPN+.
