Maybe it was the “Mustache March” thing, or the fact that Josh Gjormand finally started getting more at-bats.
Whatever the reason, during a recent highly-productive three-game stretch, the Madison High School graduate was one of the hottest hitters at any level of college baseball. In those three straight contests as the starting junior first baseman for the Division III Lynchburg University Hornets baseball team, Gjormand batted .667 by going 10 for 15 and was on base 14 of 18 times.
In addition, Gjormand had a triple and four doubles and drove in seven runs. During an April 13 contest, he was 5 for 7 with three doubles, a triple, a single and six RBI. He was only a homer short of the cycle. One of his doubles slammed off the fence and he flew out deep to center field in another at-bat.
“It was just one of those crazy games when I hit everything on the barrel,” Gjormand said.
In the next game, Gjormand was 3 for 4 with a double, one RBI and three walks.
The hot streak began with a 2 for 4 effort during an April 12 game.
Through April 16 action this season, Gjormand has played in 17 games. He is batting .446 with an on-base percentage of .530. He has five doubles and a triple and 10 RBI.
Gjormand has helped Lynchburg to a 26-6 overall record this season with victories in six of seven games as of April 18, and a No. 5 ranking nationally by D3baseball.com. The Hornets lead the Old Dominion Athletic Conference with a 12-2 record.
Gjormand wasn’t a regular starter early in the 2022 season because he was coming off a nasty right ankle dislocation that sidelined him for a significant amount of time last season. He received 22 staples in the joint. So he had been battling hard to earn playing time when the current campaign began.
Eventually, playing opportunities evolved about the same time Gjormand participated in a Mustache March team agreement as a number of Hornets grew and have since shaved their mustaches. Gjormand has not, and will not as long as his bat keeps producing.
“I’m going to let it ride for a while and not mess with anything. I don’t even trim it often,” Gjormand said about his facial hair. “I am seeing the ball real well right now and just having fun, and want to keep it going. Our team is going really well.”
Gjormand’s teammate, Avery Neaves, also is swinging a hot bat for Lynchburg. Through April 17 action, he was batting .439 with nine home runs, 13 doubles, two triples and 42 RBI. He has been chosen conference Player of the Week multiple times so far this season.
The two players were members of the same Vienna Post 180 American Legion team in Northern Virginia that won district and state tournament championships in the summer of 2019 and finished second in the region. They also played on last summer’s championship Chili Dogs squad of the Northern Virginia College League.