ITHACA, N.Y. – The Cornell baseball team will return to competition for the first time in nearly two years when it opens its 2022 season with a three-game series this weekend at Virginia. The teams first meet at 3 p.m. Friday, followed by a scheduled first pitch of 1 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday.
 
Cornell is coming off an abbreviated 2020 season in which it posted a 1-8 record before the COVID-19 pandemic descended on collegiate athletics, ultimately wiping out the rest of that season and the entire 2021 Ivy League campaign. The Big Red was largely turning over the majority of its lineup from the 2019 season, giving the Big Red some experience despite the long layoff.
 
Junior Wils Guy returns after leading the team with a .294 average in those nine games, taking on the leadoff duties with a team-best .368 on base percentage. His four RBI was tied for the most of the team with junior Joe Hollerbach, who figures to return to an infield mix with other incumbents such as juniors Shane Russell and Shane Russell, and sophomore Franco Alonso.
 
On the mound, all three of the Big Red's scheduled starters for the weekend will have experience at the collegiate level. Friday starter senior Luke Yacinich was tied for second-most pitching appearances on the team in 2019 with 13, primarily working long relief in Ivy League play with a smattering of weekday starts. Junior Spencer Edwards, penciled in to start Saturday, was fantastic in his collegiate debut in 2020. He surrendered just one run in five innings against Duke – an effort that landed him Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors. Sunday's starter, senior Kevin Cushing, has made 14 appearances with eight strikeouts in just 5.2 innings of work during the 2020 season.
 
The Cavaliers are coming off a 2021 season in which it finished second in the ACC Baseball Championship, then advanced to the NCAA College World Series before having its season concluded with losses to Mississippi State and Texas.
 
Virginia has won four straight to start its season, most recently rolling to a 14-0 victory over VMI at home on Wednesday afternoon. The Cavaliers started the year with three games at Gardner-Webb's facility, recording victories against Bellarmine (1-0), the hosts (7-0) and NJIT (8-3).
 
All three games will be broadcast through the host school on ACCNX. The games will be available through the ESPN app or ESPN.com, provided that the viewer has a cable provider that includes the ACC Network.