The 2021 VCU Rams baseball team represented Virginia Commonwealth University during the 2021 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Rams played their home games at The Diamond as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference. They were led by head coach Shawn Stiffler, in his 9th season at VCU.
VCU qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2015, and received their highest seeding (2) since 2001. They were eliminated in the Regional, with a final record of 38–16, including a program record 22-game win streak.
Previous season
The 2020 VCU Rams baseball team notched a 9–8 (0–0) regular season record. The season prematurely ended on March 12, 2020, due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Player movement
Departures VCU DeparturesNameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownNotes Michael Dailey 30 RHP 170 Troy, Virginia Graduated Paul Witt 2 INF 170 Harpers Ferry, West Virginia Graduated Brett Willett 3 INF 190 Middletown, Delaware Graduated
Transfers Incoming transfersNameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious School Greg Ryan 13 INF 200 Bensley, Virginia Pitt
Signing Day Recruits The following players signed National Letter of Intents to play for VCU in 2021. Pitchers Tyler Davis Yorktown, Virginia Menchville HS Campbell Ellis Georgetown, Ontario Christ the King SS Trent Goodman Ashland, Virginia Homeschooled Braedin Hunt Old Bridge, New Jersey Christian Brothers Academy Justin Humenay Beaconsfield, Quebec Taft School Hitters Griffin Boone Montclair, Virginia Forest Park HS Tyler Coy Williamsville, New York Canisius HS Jared Glinski Lynchburg, Virginia Brookville HS Connor Hujsak Goffstown, New Hampshire Goffstown HS
Preseason
Coaches Poll The Atlantic 10 baseball coaches' poll was released on February 18, 2021. VCU was picked to win the Atlantic 10 regular season championship.
Coaches' Poll 1 VCU 151 (4) 2 Fordham 149 (4) 3 Dayton 146 (4) 4 Davidson 117 5 Saint Louis 114 (1) 6 Richmond 109 7 Rhode Island 103 8 George Washington 74 9 Saint Joseph's 71 10 George Mason 46 11 La Salle 40 12 St. Bonaventure 32 13 UMass 31
Personnel
Roster 2021 VCU Rams baseball roster Pitchers 9 Nick Evangelista - Junior 10 Edwin Serrano - Junior 18 Justin Sorokowski - Junior 19 Jack Schroeder - Junior 20 Jaden Griffin - Sophomore 23 Devin Dunn - Junior 24 Maddison Furman - Sophomore 25 Jack Masloff - Freshman 30 Michael Dailey - Senior 33 Mason Delane - Freshman 34 Bradford Webb - Graduate 36 Andrew Ward - Freshman 38 Danny Watson - Sophomore 39 Evan Chenier - Sophomore 41 Cameron Goble - Freshman 43 Caleb Plummer - Sophomore 45 Tyler Davis - Freshman 46 Campbell Ellis - Freshman 50 Justin Humenay - Freshman 55 Braedin Hunt - Freshman Catchers 15 - Hunter Vay - Junior 17 - Josh Simon - Senior 21 - Logan Amiss - Freshman 31 - Connor Hicks - Freshman 37 - Nic Ericsson - Freshman 44 - Tyler Coy - Freshman
Infielders 1 - Steven Carpenter - Senior 2 - Michael Haydak - Sophomore 3 - Connor Hujsak - Freshman 4 - Aidan Healy - Freshman 6 - Griffin Boone - Freshman 13 - Greg Ryan - Sophomore 16 - Liam Hibbits - Junior 22 - Andrew Puglielli - Senior 27 - Brett Young - Freshman 28 - Tyler Locklear - Freshman 40 - Will Carlone - Freshman Outfielders 12 - Brandon Henson - Senior 26 - Cooper Benzin - Freshman 32 - Devan Barnett - Freshman 42 - Ryan Shavers - Sophomore
Utility 8 - Hogan Brown - Junior
Coaching staff
2021 VCU Rams baseball coaching staff Name Position Seasons atVCU Alma mater Shawn Stiffler Head coach 9 George Mason University (2001) Mike McRae Assistant Coach 4 Niagara University (1993) Rich Witten Assistant Coach 4 Coastal Carolina University (2012) Josh Tutwiler Assistant Coach 6 Old Dominion University (2012)
Game log Legend VCU win VCU loss Postponement/cancellation Extra innings * Non-conference gameBoldVCU team member † Make-Up Game
2021 VCU Rams baseball game log (38–16) Regular season (34–14) February (1–5) Date Time (ET) TV Opponent Rank Stadium Score Win Loss Save Attendance Overall Atlantic 10 Sources February 20 4:00 p.m. SDN at UNCW* Brooks FieldWilmington, North Carolina L 4–5 Benton (1–0) Watson (0–1) — 100 0–1 — StatsReport February 21 1:00 p.m. SDN at UNCW* Brooks Field L 1–4 Gessell (1–0) Sorokowski (0–1) Benton (1) 100 0–2 — StatsReport February 22 4:30 p.m. SDN at UNCW* Brooks Field L 5–9 Hudak (1–0) Davis (0–1) Smith (1) 100 0–3 — StatsReport February 27 12:30 p.m. YouTube at Elon* Latham ParkElon, North Carolina L 6–7 Sprake (1–0) Serrano (0–1) — 65 0–4 — StatsReport February 27 5:00 p.m. YouTube at Elon* Latham Park W 4–3 Davis (1–1) Greenler (0–3) — 65 1–4 — StatsReport February 28 1:00 p.m. YouTube at Elon* Latham Park L 7–8 Sprake (2–0) Watson (0–2) — 65 1–5 — StatsReport March (12–5) Date Time (ET) TV Opponent Rank Stadium Score Win Loss Save Attendance Overall Atlantic 10 Sources March 2 3:00 p.m. ESPN+ VMI* The DiamondRichmond, Virginia W 10–8 Ellis (1–0) Menders (0–1) — 215 2–5 — StatsReport March 5 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ at VMI* Gray–Minor StadiumLexington, Virginia W 17–2 Watson (1–2) Light (0–2) — 86 3–5 — StatsReport March 6 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ Central Michigan* The Diamond W 12–11 Davis (2–1) Palmbland (0–1) Serrano (1) 252 4–5 — StatsReport March 7 3:00 p.m. ESPN+ at VMI* Gray–Minor Stadium W 18–7 Chenier (1–0) Capehart (0–1) — 106 5–5 — StatsReport March 9 4:00 p.m. ACCNX at No. 18 Virginia Tech* English FieldBlacksburg, Virginia L 9–10 Siverling (2–0) Ward (0–1) — 1,000 5–6 — StatsReport March 10 3:00 p.m. ACCNX at No. 18 Virginia Tech* English Field W 10–7 Webb (1–0) Ritchey (0–1) — 780 6–6 — StatsReport March 12 6:30 p.m. ESPN+ Towson* The Diamond W 14–9 Chenier (2–0) Seils (1–3) — 217 7–6 — StatsReport March 13 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ Towson* The Diamond L 7–8 Clark (1–0) Serrano (0–2) Bolt (1) 228 7–7 — StatsReport March 14 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ Towson* The Diamond W 5–1 Ellis (2–0) Madden (0–1) Davis (1) 200 8–7 — StatsReport March 17 3:00 p.m. CUSA.tv at No. 25 Old Dominion* Metheny FieldNorfolk, Virginia W 12–5 Webb (2–0) Vaks (1–1) — 211 9–7 — StatsReport March 19 4:00 p.m. ESPN+ Liberty* The Diamond Postponed (inclement weather), makeup date April 3 9–7 — March 20 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Liberty* Liberty Baseball StadiumLynchburg, Virginia L 2–3 Riley (1–0) Watson (1–3) — 528 9–8 — StatsReport March 21 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ Liberty* The Diamond L 1–6 Gibson (3–2) Dailey (0–1) — 282 9–9 — StatsReport March 23 6:00 p.m. ESPN+ No. 22 Old Dominion* The Diamond L 3–5 Dobzanski (1–0) Serrano (0–3) Dean (2) 197 9–10 — StatsReport March 26 4:00 p.m. ESPN+ at William & Mary* Plumeri ParkWilliamsburg, Virginia W 8–6 Davis (4–1) Strain (2–2) Chenier (1) 133 10–10 — StatsReport March 27 1:00 p.m. ESPN3 William & Mary* The Diamond W 6–3 Ellis (3–0) Haney (0–2) Watson (1) 273 11–10 — StatsRecap March 27 4:30 p.m. ESPN3 William & Mary* The Diamond W 9–4 Ward (1–1) Pearson (1–2) — 273 12–10 — Box ScoreRecap March 30 5:00 p.m. YouTube at Elon* Latham Park W 6–3 Chenier (3–0) Simon (0–4) Davis (2) 65 13–10 — Box ScoreRecap April (11–4) Date Time (ET) TV Opponent Rank Stadium Score Win Loss Save Attendance Overall Atlantic 10 Sources April 2 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Liberty* Liberty Baseball Stadium L 3–9 Erickson (6–1) Ellis (3–1) — 187 13–11 — StatsReport April 3 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ Liberty* The Diamond W 4–2 Davis (5–1) Gibson (4–3) Chenier (2) 197 14–11 — StatsReport April 7 6:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Georgetown* Shirley Povich FieldBethesda, Maryland W 13–4 Griffin (1–0) Weeks (0–1) — 0 15–11 — StatsReport April 9 3:00 p.m. ESPN+ at George Washington Barcroft ParkArlington, Virginia W 6–4 Davis (6–1) Pfluger (0–1) Chenier (3) 0 16–11 1–0 StatsReport April 10 12:15 p.m. ESPN+ at George Washington Barcroft Park L 4–5 Cohen (3–1) Webb (1–1) — 0 16–12 1–1 StatsReport April 10 4:00 p.m. ESPN+ at George Washington Barcroft Park L 2–3 Kuncl (2–0) Serrano (0–4) — 0 16–13 1–2 StatsReport April 11 12:00 p.m. ESPN+ at George Washington Barcroft Park L 4–5 Kahler (1–0) Watson (1–4) Kuncl (3) 0 16–14 1–3 StatsReport April 13 6:00 p.m. at William & Mary* Plumeri Park W 8–3 Serrano (1–4) Mack (0–1) — 188 17–14 — StatsReport April 16 6:30 p.m. ESPN+ Davidson The Diamond W 14–3 Webb (2–1) Levy (4–3) Griffin (1) 233 18–14 2–3 StatsReport April 17 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ Davidson The Diamond W 9–8 Davis (7–1) Peaden (3–2) — 354 19–14 3–3 StatsReport April 17 5:00 p.m. ESPN+ Davidson The Diamond W 5–1 Furman (1–0) Peaden (3–3) Chenier (4) 354 20–14 4–3 StatsReport April 18 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ Davidson The Diamond W 3–1 Serrano (2–4) Fenton (1–5) Ellis (1) 218 21–14 5–3 StatsReport April 20 7:00 p.m. ESPN+ Virginia* The Diamond W 5–3 Griffin (2–0) McGarry (0–5) Davis (3) 971 22–14 — StatsReport April 23 6:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Richmond Pitt FieldTuckahoe, VirginiaCanceled (COVID-19 protocols) 22–14 5–3 Report April 24 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Richmond Pitt Field 22–14 5–3 April 24 4:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Richmond Pitt Field 22–14 5–3 April 25 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Richmond Pitt Field 22–14 5–3 April 27 6:30 p.m. ESPN+ VMI* The Diamond W 15–5 Ward (2–1) Ewald (0–2) — 394 23–14 — StatsReport April 30 6:30 p.m. ESPN+ George Mason The Diamond W 9–2 Webb (3–1) Lyons (4–2) Davis (4) 285 24–14 6–3 StatsRecap May (10–0) Date Time (ET) TV Opponent Rank Stadium Score Win Loss Save Attendance Overall Atlantic 10 Sources May 1 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ George Mason The Diamond W 3–1 Watson (2–4) Versaw-Barnes (1–5) Chenier (5) 302 25–14 7–3 StatsReport May 1 5:00 p.m. ESPN+ George Mason The Diamond W 8–1 Ellis (4–1) Cabone (0–2) — 302 26–14 8–3 StatsReport May 2 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ George Mason The Diamond W 11–2 Delane (1–0) Stoudemire (1–8) — 640 27–14 9–3 StatsReport May 4 6:00 p.m. ACCNX at Virginia* Davenport FieldCharlottesville, Virginia W 7–5 Serrano (3–4) Schoch (2–1) Davis (5) 474 28–14 — StatsReport May 7 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Saint Louis Billiken Sports CenterSt. Louis, Missouri W 14–6 Delane (2–0) Harris (4–3) — 85 29–14 10–3 StatsReport May 7 4:45 p.m. ESPN+ at Saint Louis Billiken Sports Center W 19–4 Davis (8–1) Fremion (2–1) — 60 30–14 11–3 StatsReport May 8 3:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Saint Louis Billiken Sports Center W 9–8 Ellis (5–1) Surin (0–1) — 55 31–14 12–3 StatsReport May 8 6:00 p.m. ESPN+ at Saint Louis Billiken Sports Center W 16–5 Masloff (1–0) Youngbrandt (2–6) — 45 32–14 13–3 StatsReport May 14 6:30 p.m. ESPN+ Dayton No. 28 The DiamondCanceled (COVID-19 protocols) 32–14 13–3 Report May 15 2:00 p.m. ESPN+ Dayton No. 28 The Diamond 32–14 13–3 May 15 5:00 p.m. ESPN+ Dayton No. 28 The Diamond 32–14 13–3 May 16 1:00 p.m. ESPN+ Dayton No. 28 The Diamond 32–14 13–3 May 20 6:00 p.m. at James Madison* No. 28 Veterans Memorial ParkHarrisonburg, Virginia W 20–18 Davis (9–1) Landess (1–1) — 250 33–14 — StatsReport May 21 6:00 p.m. at James Madison* No. 28 Veterans Memorial ParkHarrisonburg, Virginia W 10–1 Ward (3–1) McDonnell (1–3) — 250 34–14 — StatsReport Postseason (4–2) (3–0) Date Time (ET) TV Opponent Rank Stadium Score Win Loss Save Attendance Overall A10T Record Sources May 27 12:00 p.m. ESPN+ (4) Saint Joseph's No. 28 (1) The Diamond W 15–4 Delane (3–0) McCole (2–4) — 821 35–14 1–0 [Stats][Report] May 28 11:00 a.m. ESPN+ (3) Rhode Island No. 28 (1) The Diamond W 10–4 Serrano (4–4) Janglos (2–3) — 678 36–14 2–0 [Stats][Report] May 29 12:00 p.m. ESPN+ (2) Dayton No. 28 (1) The Diamond W 7–6 Masloff (2–0) Wolfe (4–6) Chenier (6) 728 37–14 3–0 [Stats][Report] (1–2) Date Time (ET) TV Opponent Rank Stadium Score Win Loss Save Attendance Overall NCAAT Record Sources June 4 8:00 p.m. ESPN3 vs. (3) Campbell No. 27 (2) Dudy Noble Field W 19–4 Ellis (6–1) Harrington (6–3) — 7,577 38–14 1–0 StatsReport June 5 9:25 p.m. ESPN3 at (1) No. 8 Mississippi State No. 27 (2) Dudy Noble Field L 4–16 MacLeod (6–4) Delane (3–1) — 10,011 38–15 1–1 StatsReport June 6 7:00 p.m. ESPN3 vs. (3) Campbell No. 27 (2) Dudy Noble Field L 10–19 Cummings (2–2) Davis (9–2) — 7,498 38–16 1–2 Box ScoreReport