2021 COLLEGE WORLD SERIES

June 22, 2021

Griff McGarry

Virginia Cavaliers

Postgame Press Conference

Mississippi State - 6, Virginia - 5

Q. What was this night like that started off so special for you and then just kind of got carried away there in the eighth inning?

GRIFF MCGARRY: I mean, definitely a roller coaster of a night. But, nonetheless, very exciting seeing my teammates kind of jump on an early lead and it seemed like barrel after barrel, it was really awesome to see. And hats off to Mississippi State. It's a great program. And a bunch of ball players.

So I mean, it was a great game. And obviously tough ending for us. But we're not out of the fight. We've been in this situation before in the Regionals, Super Regionals. Feeling really confident and I know our guys will get it done.

Q. I know the team's been in this kind of situation before, the back against the wall. Is this one any more of a gut punch just because of how good the team was through the first seven innings? Is this any more of a gut punch given how good the team was in the first seven innings of this one?

GRIFF MCGARRY: I don't think it was a gut punch. I mean, that's just baseball. It's a game that can go back and forth. And Mississippi State got the best of us tonight. But I'm hoping we play them again and we'll get another chance at them. That's just baseball.

Q. Obviously you've really had to grind through this season and figure out this control piece as you've gone. But what's been the key for you? The last two, three weeks now seems like this is the guy, this is the guy that you always were kind of destined to be. How were you able to unlock this?

GRIFF MCGARRY: I think definitely just a lot of hard work. My coaches, Coach Oak and Coach Drew, instilling confidence in me, even when I was struggling throughout the season. There's been a few slight mechanical changes, just working a little bit more downhill with my front shoulder, and that's something that Coach Drew and I have been working on a lot over the past few months. I think the biggest thing for me is my teammates and my coaches still believing in me despite not having success. I think that goes to say a lot about our program, a lot about the guys I'm playing with and the people I'm playing for.

Q. Just going off the experience that you all have had this postseason with the other two losses, also both coming by just one run, what do you learn from those and how do you apply that over the next few days to get ready for Thursday?

GRIFF MCGARRY: I think it gives you perspective. That's just baseball, as I've alluded to earlier. It's not going to go your way sometimes. But it's all about how you bounce back. And we've done a great job of that this postseason. I'm very confident in this team that we'll be able to do it again.

Q. You were talking a lot about how confident you guys are. And even when you lost that first game to South Carolina, you guys were confident. Even going back to going into April when you guys were kind of behind the 8-ball, where does that confidence stem from as a program that you guys have leaned on these last couple of months?

GRIFF MCGARRY: I think the majority of that is our coaching staff. Those guys really care about us. And they know what we're capable of. And on a night like this, where it's a close game, a tough loss, they're still positive, ready for next game. And just kind of reminding us that we're not out of this fight and that there's still more baseball to be played. So it starts with the coaching staff.

And also it's a special group of guys. I'm really grateful to be a part of this program, especially right now. And these guys know what we can do. And everybody has each other's back. And just relying on each other when things get tough. It's really important. And I couldn't be more grateful for the group of guys that I'm able to play with.