The Virginia baseball team will open the second round of the 2026 Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Championship against Duke on May 20 at Truist Field. The Cavaliers, who finished the regular season with a record of 35-20 overall and 14-16 in conference play, are set to take on the Blue Devils (26-30, 10-20 ACC) with first pitch scheduled for Wednesday morning.
This matchup is significant as Virginia enters its 52nd consecutive ACC Tournament appearance, maintaining its status as one of only two programs—alongside Clemson—to participate every year since the tournament began in 1973. The Cavaliers hold an all-time record of 110-73-1 against Duke and have been seeded eighth for just the third time in program history.
Left-handed pitcher Henry Zatkowski will start for Virginia. Zatkowski has posted a 7-1 record this season with a 4.12 earned run average over fifteen appearances and leads his team with eighty-eight strikeouts across seventy-four and one-third innings pitched. On the offensive side, Virginia averages nearly eight runs per game and has hit ninety-one home runs this season, ranking third in the conference for home runs.
Recent performances have seen individual Cavaliers receive recognition: AJ Gracia was named to both Perfect Game’s first team Midseason All-American list and to the Golden Spikes Midseason Watch List; Lucas Hartman received second-team honors from both Perfect Game and D1Baseball; Eric Becker also made midseason All-American teams; Noah Yoder was named to Perfect Game’s Freshman second team.
During their final regular-season series at Louisville, Zatkowski contributed six innings of one-run pitching while Becker returned from injury to go three-for-six at bat. The Cavaliers rallied late but ultimately dropped two out of three games that weekend. Earlier series included notable achievements such as Joey Tiroly becoming just the seventh player in program history to homer three times in a single game during senior weekend.
Looking ahead, Virginia aims to advance past Duke despite trailing historically (2-7) against them in ACC Tournament play. With strong postseason statistics and multiple players earning national attention throughout the year, observers will be watching closely as they seek another deep tournament run.
