VA Gameday Bulletin: FCS Bracket Set, Transfer Portal News, College Baseball & More

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Summarizing some of the most important news and notes from the week in Virginia college sports.

VA Gameday Bulletin

Monday, April 12 – Sunday, April 18

VMI & James Madison to Face Off in FCS Playoffs

The Keydets beat The Citadel in their season finale to earn their first-ever FCS playoff bid. Traditional powerhouse James Madison finished their season undefeated, beating Richmond in their season finale. Now, the two Virginia programs will play in the first round of the FCS Playoffs at Bridgeforth Stadium in Harrisonburg. This year there’s a 16-team field rather than a 32-team field and they’re the only two Virginia programs in the bunch. The game will be on Saturday, April 24th at 2:00pm. Full schedule here.

UVA Basketball Adds ECU’s Jayden Gardner

Tony Bennett went out and got one of the biggest gets in the transfer portal, adding ECU transfer Jayden Gardner. A two-time all-conference and one-time all-academic selection at East Carolina, Gardner said he and Bennett “had a good connection from the start.” At 6-foot-7, he averaged 18 points and 8.7 rebounds per game in three years. He’ll have two years of eligibility left.

Tony Bennett’s Son, Eli Bennett, Joins D-1 Basketball Ranks

Former Covenant and STAB player Eli Bennett will head to Charlotte as a preferred walk-on under longtime Tony Bennett assistant Ron Sanchez. After announcing the news on Instagram, a who’s who of Virginia basketball names reached out with congratulations, including Ty Jerome, Kihei Clark, Sam Hauser, and Jay Huff.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNvStNWMuNS/?utm_source=ig_embed

Mason’s Tyler Kolek Picks Big East Program

It would have been nice to see Tyler Kolek stick around the new George Mason basketball regime, but he chose to move up the ranks of college hoops to the Big East. Kolek, the reigning A-10 Rookie of the Year, will play for Shaka Smart at Marquette.

VCU Baseball Shoots Up RPI

After a red-hot week that included five wins, the VCU baseball team is now ranked No. 52 in the college baseball RPI. They beat William & Mary midweek, then Davidson four times over the weekend to improve to 21-14 on the season. They were ranked No. 105 in the RPI at the end of last week. The Rams will have a big test at home on Tuesday against Virginia. Tickets for the game can be found here.

UVA Baseball Triumphs in Extra Innings vs. Louisville But Loses Series

The Virginia baseball team won a thrilling extra-innings game on Friday night, beating No. 7 Louisville 8-7. The Wahoos rallied back from a 7-1 deficit and won when Louisville’s second baseman let a ground ball go between his legs in the 10th inning. Unfortunately, the Wahoos dropped games on Saturday and Sunday to bring their overall record (17-17) back to .500. They’re right on the bubble at the moment so a winning week will go a long way. They travel to Richmond to play VCU on Tuesday then host Duke for a three-game weekend series.