Score: VCU 8, Georgia 1 (NCAA Regionals)
Location: Chapel Hill, N.C. (Boshamer Stadium)
Records: VCU 41-18, Georgia 35-22
 
The short story: The Rams slugged four home runs to open the Chapel Hill Regional with their 16th straight win and advance to the winner's bracket.
 
FIRST PITCH

• Sophomore shortstop Connor Hujsak had his first career multi-home run game, going 3-for-5 with a pair of bombs, a walk, and tied a career high with four RBIs.
• Graduate catcher Jacob Selden and redshirt sophomore designated hitter Will Carlone each added solo homers.
• Redshirt sophomore third baseman Ben Nippolt hit a pair of doubles, adding to his 3-for-4 night with a walk, a hit-by-pitch and an RBI.
• Redshirt sophomore first baseman Tyler Locklear went 2-for-4 with a double, two intentional walks, a run and an RBI.
• VCU's pitching was phenomenal throughout, with sophomore left-hander Tyler Davis improving to 5-2 on the year with 3.2 scoreless innings of work, freshman righty Chase Hungate striking out three Bulldogs in 3.1 frames, allowing one run on three hits, and redshirt sophomore lefty Jack Masloff closing the win with 2.0 scoreless innings and two punch outs.
• The Rams outhit Georgia 13-7, and tied a season high with six hit-by-pitches as a team.
• In addition to 16 consecutive wins, VCU has won 24 of its last 27 contests, and is 38-10 since March 8.
• Seven different Rams recorded hits in the game, and seven different Rams scored runs.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Hujsak sparked the VCU offense in the top of the first, lining a three-run homer off the scoreboard in in left center, scoring Locklear and redshirt junior right fielder Logan Amiss.
• The Rams tacked on another run in the top of the second. Redshirt sophomore left fielder Cooper Benzin led off with a single to left center, then moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt from freshman second baseman Marcus O'Malley. A hard-hit single to the pitcher from Nippolt put runners on the corners, before Locklear ripped an RBI double to right center, pushing the VCU lead to 4-0.
• Selden put VCU on the scoreboard for the third straight inning, blasting a solo homer over the fence in right center to extend the Rams' advantage to 5-0.
• O'Malley led off the fifth with a single up the middle, then scored when Nippolt sent an RBI double down into the right field corner, making it 6-0.
• Carlone led off the sixth with an opposite-field homer, sending his eighth round-tripper of the season to nearly the identical spot as Selden's solo shot in the third and extending the lead to 7-0. 
• VCU got a leadoff homer for the second straight frame, as Hujsak hit his second of the day to straightaway center to make it 8-0 in the seventh.

 
LOCKLEAR RECORD WATCH

• Locklear's RBI double tied him with Joe Van Meter (2010) for the VCU single-season record at 76.
• He remains in second place all-time at VCU with 75 runs this season.
• Locklear's 24th double of the year moved him into a tie for third place in program history for a single season, drawing level with Scott Sizemore (2005) and Erik Sauve (1994).

 
NOTABLE

• Hujsak's homers gave him 10 on the year, and three in his NCAA Tournament career after he hit one against Campbell at the 2021 Starkville Regional. 
• Carlone's home run was his eighth of the year, while Selden's was his fourth.
• Locklear also leads the Rams with 87 hits, 43 walks, and 27 multi-hit games. He's on a nine-game hitting streak and has reached base in 42 straight contests.
• VCU applied consistent pressure offensively, scoring in each of the first three innings, and then in three straight frames from the fifth through the seventh.
• Jonathan Cannon, a First Team All-SEC selection, took the loss for Georgia after conceding five runs on seven hits across 3.2 innings.

 
UP NEXT
VCU advances to the winner's bracket of the Chapel Hill Regional, taking on the host, No. 10 North Carolina, on Saturday, June 4 at 7 p.m. from Boshamer Stadium. The game can be seen on the ESPN family of networks, and tickets can be purchased here.