Fresh off the school’s second-ever NCAA Super Regionals appearance, the 10th-ranked (ESPN/Softball America) Virginia Tech softball team enters the 2022 season with high expectations and arguably the most challenging schedule in program history.
The Hokies return almost their entire roster from the 2021 season, including NFCA First Team All-American and ACC Pitcher of the Year Keely Rochard.
Rochard finished in the top three in the nation in strikeouts, shutouts and wins for the second straight season. Her performance against No. 2 UCLA in Game 1 of the Super Regionals was so impressive that the NCAA produced a highlight video of her 12-strikeout outing for their YouTube channel:
Rochard will be joined by all of the primary starters from last year, including six players who batted .297 or better: Cameron Fagan (.409), Kelsey Brown (.384), Alexa Milius (.330), Kelsey Bennett (.314), Jayme Bailey (.309) and Addy Greene (.297).Brown, Bennett, and Rochard were all listed among the Extra Innings Softball’s top 100 college players for the 2022 season. Combined with one of the most highly ranked recruiting classes in school history, optimism has never been higher in Blacksburg.
“We were close to the World Series last year,” Virginia Tech head coach Pete D’Amour said. “With just a few tweaks, we feel like we can take the next step.”
Here’s a look at the 2022 Hokies:
Pitching and Catching
A fifth-year senior from Williamsburg, Va., Rochard pitched 244 of the Hokiies’ 339.2 innings last year (71.8%) with 348 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.38.
She won all three games in the Arizona State Regional before shutting down UCLA in the first game of the Super Regionals. Rochard has just returned from a tryout with Team USA and D’Amour said she is in “as good of shape as she has been since I’ve been here.”
Rochard has shown that she is capable of beating any team in the country, but the key for Virginia Tech will be finding some additional arms behind her. D’Amour believe this team has several promising possibilities.
Sophomores Ivy Rosenberry (3.06 ERA, 27 K, 48 IP) and Mackenzie Osborne (2.76 ERA, 22 K, 45.2 IP) both have a year under their belt and are more experienced. Rosenberry pitched two early season shutouts last year against Kennesaw State and Clemson, and Osbourne had solid late season outings against Florida State and Notre Dame.
“Ivy and Ozzy have improved tremendously since last year,” D’Amour said. “They both give us good options behind Keely, and when you add Emma Lemley into the mix, I like where what we have. I’m really confident in all of our pitchers.”
Lemley is a highly touted freshman from Jefferson Forest who had an impressive summer with the Williamsburg Starz and a dominating fall in Blacksburg. D1 Softball picked her as the ACC Freshman of the Year, if that were to hold true, the Hokies should be in excellent shape in the circle.
“[She’s] tough, throws hard (upper 60s), and just has the moxie of a good pitcher,” D’Amour said.
Duties behind the plate will fall primarily on senior Mackenzie Lawter, who has 119 starts in her VT career.
The fifth-year senior from South Boston, Va. has been the model of consistency at catcher. She started 42 games in 44 appearances in 2021, and she’s thrown out 27 baserunners in her career. Though she hit .195 last year, D’Amour reports that she has swung the bat really well this preseason.
Junior Alexa Milius (.330 average, 7 HRs in 2021) is a utility player and 10 of her 33 starts last season came behind the plate. Combine her with freshman Rachel Casteen, who D’Amour described as “a good hitter who can play multiple positions,” Tech has depth at catcher.
Infield
Due an abundance of riches, aligning the chess pieces defensively may be one of D’Amour’s biggest challenges.
On the left side of the infield, shortstop Kelsey Bennett (.314 average, 13 HRs) and third baseman Cameron Fagan (.409 average, 5 HRs) made 85 of the possible 104 starts at those two positions in 2021. Milius also started 10 games at third base.
At second base, sophomore Addy Greene (.297 average) started 38 games last season, while junior Morgan Overaitis (.266 average) started 14. Freshman Bre Peck, a top 25 recruit by both Extra Innings Softball and Softball America, had an impressive fall. There’s also graduate transfer Ally Repko, who was a four-year starter for Elon (.340 average, 9 HRs).
“When stepping into the batter’s box, Ally is as confident of a hitter as I’ve ever coached,” D’Amour said of Repko. “The batter’s box is hers and she dares the pitcher to pitch to her. Ally won’t be intimidated or fazed by anyone we play. … When she’s at the plate, she likes to get her hacks in.”
D’Amour also finds himself with multiple options at first base.
Junior Jayme Bailey, one of the best hitters in Virginia Tech history (.351 career average) started 42 games at first last season, but she’s versatile enough to play a number of places, including right field. Junior Meredith Slaw, who led the team in hitting in 2020 (.409 average) will also be in the mix.
That means the Hokies potentially have eight solid candidates for four infield spots. Below is a breakdown of how Tech lined up in its six Regional and Super Regional games last season in the infield. All four of the starters are back.
1B: Bailey
2B: Greene
SS: Bennett
3B: Fagan
“The game today values athleticism more and more every year,” D’Amour said, “so we’re looking for kids that can run and hit the ball over the fence. The majority of our kids can play multiple positions, which really ratchets up the competition in practice and gives us multiple options on game day.”
Infield defense was sometimes an issue last season. Virginia Tech ranked in the middle of the pack in the ACC in fielding percentage, committing 46 errors. D’Amour and the team realize that’s an area for improvement.
“The ladies have been working hard on improving their defense this spring,” D’Amour said, “and I want to mention that the pitching machines that our contributors helped us purchase are helping us get better. Those machines can also create ground balls that give us many more fielding opportunities than a coach could ever provide. So if we’re better on defense this season, our fans get an assist.”
Outfield
The outfield is another area where talent abounds.
Kelsey Brown (31-31 in stolen bases in 2021), who is No. 1 on Virginia Tech’s career batting list with a .389 average, should be a fixture in left field. She is one of the fastest players to ever wear the orange and maroon and her defense is a program staple.
Veteran Darby Trull, who has 141 career starts and a .326 career batting average, will patrol center field. D’Amour has repeatedly called Trull “the best centerfielder in the league.”Sophomore Emma Ritter (.257 average, 16-17 stolen bases) started 37 games in right field last year, while Bailey saw a handful of time (10 starts) there. It’s possible that could happen again this year with a player like Overaitis. Regardless, that it’s a safe bet that the outfield will be in good hands.
“Defensively, I don’t know that there are many programs that have a better outfield than ours,” D’Amour said. “They have great speed and they just go get the ball.”
Designated Hitter
Grace Chavez started 20 games as the DH last season and hit seven home runs, including three in as many games against Florida State. She is second all-time in slugging percentage (.642) in program history.
She could be challenged by all the aforementioned players, who could potentially be placed in the DH role if they are not playing in the field.
Schedule
The 2022 schedule is one of the most ambitious in Tech history with 20 games against teams that received NCAA bids last season.
Furthermore, D’Amour & Co. face five teams (Alabama, Florida State, Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennessee) that were top 16 seeds in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Success against such a schedule would bode well for the Hokies come Selection Sunday.
“Yes, we have a demanding schedule in 2022, but we have an experienced team and we have some lofty goals as a program,” D’Amour said. “Playing an aggressive schedule will hopefully help us achieve those goals.”
The season gets underway on Friday, February 11 against Wisconsin in the Northern Lights Southern Nights Softball tournament in Leesburg, Fla. The Hokies will play five games in three days, including three against Missouri, Kentucky, and Northwestern, all top 25 foes.
TSL will have an in-depth preview of the Hokies’ opponents next week.