Jacob Ference connects for an RBI as Virginia advanced to the NCAA Tournament Super Regional round. ~ Photo by Kris Wright/TheSabre.com
During one of the first conversations with Virginia baseball coach Brian O’Connor, catcher Jacob Ference thought he had already hung up his cleats after a stellar career at Division III Salisbury. In fact, Ference was at the beach.
After entering the transfer portal to test the waters at the encouragement of his friends and former coaches, however, Ference suddenly was knee deep in the recruiting process. With O’Connor, a National Championship coach no less, who he had watched in the College World Series as a Maryland native.
But before Ference could pull his gear out of the retirement lane, O’Connor had a question.
“In the conversations that we would have on the phone and I remember one of them like it was yesterday where he was, I think you were in Myrtle Beach, riding jet skis ya know,” O’Connor said. “I was down in Georgia doing some high school recruiting and had a 45-minute conversation with him about why. Why do you want to do this? Why would UVA be the right place? ... It’s the why that’s important because we want to make sure it’s the right guy that’s going to join forces with us moving forward.”
O’Connor liked what he heard and ultimately decided Ference was the right guy to bring into the program alongside Ethan Anderson at catcher as the Hoos replaced Kyle Teel behind the plate. Fast forward nearly a year and retirement is still on hold for Ference for at least another weekend.
Virginia made sure of that with a 3-0 run through the NCAA Tournament Charlottesville Regional, which wrapped up with a 9-2 UVA win against Mississippi State on Sunday. Ference played a big role in extending his own career too as he made the All-Tournament team.
That honor came after Ference went 4-10 at the plate for a .400 batting average with 3 walks as well. He scored 2 runs and tallied an RBI as well. The latter came in the third inning Sunday and brought in what would be the game-winning run. With the score tied 2-2, Ference dumped the ball into left field on a 3-1 pitch with 2 outs and runners at the corners that plated Bobby Whalen.
The 3-2 lead turned out to be all starting pitcher Jay Woolfolk needed as he tossed an absolute gem on the mound. Woolfolk went a career-long 8 innings and recorded a career-best 7 strikeouts on the way to being named the Regional’s Most Outstanding Player.
Ference, of course, was on the receiving end of those pitches as he had been all weekend for UVA. The Cavaliers got three of their best starts of the season from Joe Savino, Evan Blanco, and Woolfolk in succession as well as strong relief appearances from Chase Hungate and Matt Augustin. Virginia allowed just 8 total runs in the three games.
Ference’s ability to handle pitchers, play defense, and contribute at the plate like he did in the three NCAA Regional games is what drew the program to him in the portal. The talent was notable - Ference set a Salisbury single season record with 14 home runs as a senior and helped the program win a DIII National Championship as a sophomore in 2021 - so once Virginia associate coach Kevin McMullan did the initial legwork, the rest unfolded from there.
The graduate transfer turned the opportunity into yet another set of NCAA Tournament victories this weekend. He currently sports a .362 batting average, a .734 slugging percentage, and a .469 on-base percentage for the season. He has posted 68 hits, 17 home runs, 53 runs scored, and 41 RBI too.
O’Connor said everyone is “so grateful that it’s worked out” as the program heads to its ninth Super Regional in the last 15 years.
“I mean it was everything I could hope for,” Ference said. “Obviously, the history of this program and the culture that’s embedded into it speaks for itself. Coming from Salisbury, it’s a lot of similarities. I’m just glad to be a part of it and contribute in any way I can.”
1 Comment