Today, O’Connor returns to the field officially as Virginia (38-21) opens play in the Fullerton regional against second-seeded UCLA (31-25) at 7 p.m. The winner of the contest will meet the Fullerton-Rider winner on Saturday at 11 p.m., and the two opening day losers will meet at 7 p.m. in an elimination game.

Schimwer’s confidence prior to the potential showdown does not place him in the over-the-top John Rocker mold. In fact, Schwimer and Crawford are close friends.

Playing a complete game seemed impossible for most of the season. When the offense clicked, primetime pitching performances were unobtainable. Tossing gems on the mound turned into heartbreaking losses as poor offensive execution and defensive woes proved costly.