COLUMBIA, S.C. – In between celebratory hugs and group photos, Kyle Teel stood along the first base line railing and signed autographs. Virginia’s star freshman, in a backward hat and untucked jersey, was giving off celebrity vibes as he scribbled his name for a slew of fans soaking up every moment of what they witnessed Monday afternoon at Founders Park.
The Cavaliers are in the College World Series for the fifth time in 12 seasons. That became official around 4:12 pm. Monday when center fielder Chris Newell camped under a River Town fly ball and the Wahoos defeated Dallas Baptist, 5-2, to take the decisive game of this NCAA Super Regional. But it was some 30 minutes earlier when ink could start on the next chapter in UVa’s epic baseball story.
Move over Ernie Clement, Adam Haseley and Pavin Smith. Make room for Kyle Teel.
Like the legendary postseason performances of rookies past, Teel etched his name in Wahoo lore when he took Peyton Sherlin’s 2-2 breaking ball for a grand slam in the seventh inning, emphatically pulling Virginia out of a 2-1 hole and into a lead that would stay.
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Teel, a freshman All-American batting .363 this NCAA Tournament, is sure to have plenty of big hits over the rest of his baseball career. Monday’s, though, will be tough to top.
“When I hit the ball,” Teel said, “I didn’t think it was out. I thought I hit a deep fly-out. But very grateful for it to go over the fence.”
Teel was reserved in his post-game reflection, a mood that countered a wild race around the bases that featured his signature oversized helmet falling off before he reached second.
Brian O’Connor has seen Teel’s kind before. Virginia doesn’t win the national championship in 2015 without clutch performances from Clement (walk-off single that sent the Cavaliers past Maryland in the Super Regional), Haseley (five shutout innings as UVa’s surprise starting pitcher in Game 2 of the CWS Finals against Vanderbilt) and Smith (three RBI, including the go-ahead single, in the title-clinching Game 3).
What does Teel have in common with those iconic first-years before him?
“I’ll tell you the characteristic — fearless,” said O’Connor, UVa’s 18th-year head coach. “Kyle Teel is fearless. He isn’t afraid, and to win games at this elite level of baseball, you not only have to have skill, you can’t be afraid. You will crumble at times when pressure’s on if you’re afraid. He’s not afraid. He’s got 100% belief in his ability, and he is going to let it rip every time he steps on the baseball field. That is going to serve him well in our uniform, and that is going to serve him well for the rest of his career.
“And that’s the characteristics those other guys had. Ernie Clement wasn’t afraid, 18 years old. Pavin Smith wasn’t afraid. Adam Haseley wasn’t afraid. They knew they belonged, and they attacked it.”
Teel’s favorite quote is “No pressure, no diamonds,” a line originated by 19th-century Scottish historian Thomas Carlyle and later made famous by former Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III.
Teel had those four words in his head Monday upon stepping to the plate in the most intense athletic situation of his life.
“It’s difficult,” Teel said. “There’s a lot of emotions involved, but just controlling those emotions and accepting all the pressure and doing the best you can is all that matters.”
Teel’s strategy? See breaking ball, bomb breaking ball.
“His go-to pitch(es) against lefties were breaking balls,” Teel said, referring to Sherlin, who appeared in Saturday’s Game 1. “I was just waiting for one that was a good pitch to hit. That was my approach — hit the breaking ball hard.”
Mission accomplished. Legend born.
“Kyle Teel stepped up,” O’Connor said. “It’s these moments that players have to emerge, and he did. It was his day to step up.”